Copper Cooling Plates May Cut Data Center Energy Consumption, But Price Hike Looms

The energy consumption of artificial intelligence (AI) data centers has been a growing concern due to their high water and power usage. Researchers have been exploring ways to reduce this consumption, and one potential solution involves using copper plates for cooling.

A team of American and Japanese scientists has developed pure copper plates that can cool data center equipment more efficiently than aluminum plates currently in use. The new plates feature metal pin fins on their base, which are attached to computer chips and emit a cooling liquid.

Copper has a high thermal conductivity of 400 W/m·K, allowing it to transfer heat faster than other materials like aluminum and steel. The researchers estimate that implementing these copper plates would reduce data center cooling from around 30% of overall energy usage to just 1.1%.

However, the price of copper is already at a record high due to supply chain issues, tariffs, and increasing demand. As data centers ramp up their use of copper for construction and operations, the situation could worsen, affecting not only consumer tech but also industries reliant on copper like solar panels and satellites.