Hard water, hot servers, a dosing plant still months away
A hyperscale data centre relied on adiabatic cooling for its servers, using municipal make-up water with variable seasonal hardness up to 310 ppm as CaCO₃. Without pretreatment, the hard water caused CaCO₃ and Mg(OH)₂ scale on heat-exchange surfaces, reducing efficiency and increasing overheating risk during high temperatures and peak IT loads.
A permanent pH-control dosing system was planned but months away, so an urgent temporary treatment solution was needed to sustain cooling, protect servers from thermal stress, and achieve the required cycles of concentration (COC).
At high ambient temperatures and IT loads, stable cooling is critical. Conductivity bleed control maintains the target COC, but operating at a low COC to limit scale increases the need for scale inhibitors, corrosion protection, and biocides, including Legionella control.
Remove the hardness, not just inhibit the scale
Ion exchange softening removed hardness at the point of entry, addressing the root cause of scale rather than relying on chemical inhibition. This supported the required cycles of concentration, reduced chemical demand, and minimised scale, maintenance, and descaling.
The solution also accommodated different adiabatic cooler designs and specifications, which vary by manufacturer in efficiency, water use, and maintenance needs.
HydroPURE units provide a rapidly deployable, modular system with PLC control, instrumentation, pressure regulation, safety relief, alarms, and remote telemetry — supporting reliable operation, real-time monitoring, and assurance in mission-critical data centres.
Below 1 ppm, with no derating and N+1 intact
The results of the temporary solution were rapidly realised, maintaining water hardness below 1 ppm as CaCO₃, compared with fluctuating seasonal feed reaching up to 310 ppm. With the rapid deployment of the Ecolutia HydroPURE temporary ion-exchange softening systems, the data centre was able to:
The interim solution maintained cooling system efficiency, eliminated the risk of temperature excursions, and avoided the operational disruption and high remediation costs associated with descaling critical cooling infrastructure, ensuring uninterrupted hyperscale data centre operation.
Supporting seasonal cooling demands
Data centre cooling demand is higher during elevated ambient temperatures and peak IT load. As a result, on-site softeners or reverse osmosis (RO) plants may operate intermittently or remain idle when cooling demand is lower.
Inactivity introduces operational risks such as biological growth, resin fouling, membrane degradation, or control system faults when brought into service at short notice during higher demand conditions.
Ecolutia’s temporary mobile water treatment fleet provides a flexible support for seasonal needs. Our HydroPURE Series units are rapidly deployed to supplement or bypass on-site treatment systems during peak demand periods, maintenance activities, or unexpected operational challenges.
