Webinar highlights full range of advanced engine technology power solutions for data centers

To help ensure U.S. leadership on artificial intelligence, a range of power solutions utilizing advanced engine technology are being deployed at data centers around the globe.

These power solutions, along with emissions and fuels considerations, were the subject of a recent webinar, now available for viewing online.

“Our session featured experts representing the leaders in advanced engine and power system technology including TJ Tarabulski with Caterpillar, Michael Sanford of Cummins, and Brian Ponstein with Rolls-Royce Power Systems,” said Allen Schaeffer, executive director of the Engine Technology Forum.  

“They outlined the basics of advanced engines and power-generation systems and how they are deployed at data centers today,” he added. “Our discussions also covered the current state of the grid power system, electric supply and demand issues, and state and local policy considerations.”

Standby emergency power is critical for data centers where electric-power losses can have economic impacts of $9,000 per minute.

Diesel generators remain the gold standard for standby emergency power for data centers and other mission-critical applications.

This is due to their rapid response time and load-carrying capacity, reliability and scalability.

“When grid power is interrupted, whether due to weather-related outages, equipment failures or other events, standby emergency generators respond rapidly, carrying a full power load within 10 seconds of grid outage,” Schaeffer said. “Through advancements in engine technology, switchgear and other controls, these systems seamlessly manage power transitions between the grid and racks of computers, cooling and other systems that data centers depend on.”

These engine-based generators and power systems are valuable assets not only to the data centers to which they support but also to the grid power system and communities in which they are located.

Engines equipped with advanced emissions controls that are properly permitted can also be dispatched by the utility to protect the grid from brownouts and blackouts during periods of peak power demand.

As discussed by Louise Arnold from Johnson Matthey, selective catalytic reduction (SCR) systems enable both new and existing generators to achieve new levels of near-zero environmental performance.

Ensuring reliability of generators used in any setting requires a high-quality fuel supply that can be achieved through monitoring and the use of appropriate additives, as reviewed by Mary Dery from Innospec.

The rapidly growing demand for data centers is leading to significant challenges for utility power systems to deliver the amount of power in the needed timeframe.

To bridge these gaps of time or power supply, on-site standby generators, when properly designed and permitted, can provide an important power option for data-center operators.

“Where available, generators can also be fueled with advanced renewable biofuels, such as hydrotreated vegetable oils (HVO), that boost the sustainability of data-center operations by lowering emissions by 50 percent to 75 percent,” Schaeffer said. “Other low-carbon alternatives, including renewable natural gas and hydrogen-gas blends, are also being utilized. Most of the time, standby emergency generators are not operating. But when there is a loss of grid power whether for a few seconds, minutes or hours, they respond rapidly and carry the full electrical load to keep our digital world up and running until grid power is restored.”

To view the recorded webinar and presentation, click here.