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Data centers can reduce cooling-water use by measuring it consistently, avoiding unnecessary cooling demand, improving cooling-tower operation, using economizers or dry heat rejection where site conditions allow, and considering closed-loop liquid cooling for new builds or major retrofits. No single design is best everywhere: reducing on-site water can increase energy use or shift water impacts elsewhere, so evaluate both the water boundary and the facility’s full heat-rejection path.
Measure water use before choosing a fix
Water usage effectiveness (WUE) relates facility water use to the energy consumed by IT equipment. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Federal Energy Management Program (DOE FEMP) defines it as annual site water use in liters divided by annual IT-equipment energy use in kilowatt-hours. Microsoft describes its metric as water used for humidification and cooling per IT kilowatt-hour. Those descriptions do not establish a universal reporting boundary shared by all operators, so matching the label “WUE” is not enough to make two figures comparable.
For a meaningful baseline, record total site water use and IT energy over the same period, and document what the water total includes. In particular, state whether it includes cooling, humidification, cooling-tower blowdown, and reclaimed or recycled water. A site WUE figure does not by itself show local water scarcity or water impacts associated with electricity generation.
- Keep the reporting period and system boundary consistent when comparing facilities or years.
- Identify the water source—such as potable, reclaimed, or recycled water—and report withdrawals and consumption with their boundaries clear.
- Track energy use and emissions alongside water, and account for local grid conditions and water stress.
Reduce avoidable cooling demand through operations
Review temperature and humidity controls
DOE FEMP recommends checking temperature and humidity settings. A facility may be operating below recommended temperature set points or controlling humidity more tightly than necessary. Review the server specifications, reliability requirements, and site operating limits before changing controls; this is an opportunity to assess settings, not a reason to exceed equipment limits.
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Use water-side economizing when the system and weather permit
In suitable conditions, water-side economizing can bypass or unload chillers by transferring heat through an integrated heat exchanger. Its performance depends on the system configuration and outdoor conditions, so it is not a year-round solution for every climate. Check the existing heat-exchanger arrangement and the hours when local conditions make economizing available before estimating savings.
Consider thermal storage selectively
Thermal storage can shift cooling production to off-peak or nighttime hours in cool, dry climates. DOE cautions that water and energy savings may be limited: the approach still relies on mechanical cooling and evaporation, and it can constrain air-side economizing.
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Improve cooling-tower operation
Cooling towers reject heat partly by evaporating water. As evaporation concentrates dissolved minerals, operators discharge some water as blowdown to control concentration; makeup water replaces both evaporative losses and water discharged through blowdown. The cooling load, incoming water quality, treatment, and system limits all affect demand.
Manage cycles of concentration within water-quality limits
Cycles of concentration describe how much dissolved material is concentrated in tower water relative to the incoming makeup water. Raising cycles can reduce blowdown and the makeup water needed to replace it, but only within the limits set by water chemistry, treatment, and the equipment. DOE FEMP says two to four cycles are common and six or more may be possible. It reports that increasing cycles from three to six reduces cooling-tower makeup-water requirements by 20% and blowdown by 50%, citing its Cooling Tower Best Management Practice; the accessed guidance page does not state that figure’s publication date.
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Operators can monitor water chemistry with appropriate facility equipment, such as a conductivity meter or cooling-tower water test kit. Select it with a water-treatment professional and follow the system specifications; DOE’s guidance establishes the relevance of water chemistry but does not endorse a particular product.
Choose heat-rejection equipment for the site
Air-side economizing and dry heat rejection can reduce on-site cooling-water use. Evaporative approaches can use less energy in some conditions, but consume water. The right balance depends on climate, seasonal operating hours, local water stress and source, energy supply, workload heat density, reliability needs, and the existing facility’s heat-rejection path.
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| Approach | Water and energy considerations | Key site questions |
|---|---|---|
| Air-side economizing or dry heat rejection | Can reduce on-site cooling-water use; energy effects depend on the system and operating conditions. | How often do outdoor conditions permit it? Can the facility maintain required operating conditions? |
| Evaporative cooling or cooling towers | Evaporation consumes water, and blowdown adds water demand; evaporative approaches can use less energy in some conditions. | What are the local water conditions and source? What cycles of concentration can water chemistry and treatment support? |
| Water-side economizing | Can bypass or unload chillers in suitable conditions; results depend on an integrated heat exchanger and system design. | Does the installed configuration support it, and how many hours per year are conditions suitable? |
Google says water cooling can reduce energy use and related carbon emissions compared with air-based cooling in some geographies. Its stated approach is to balance carbon-free energy availability with responsibly sourced water, including alternatives to freshwater, to minimize net climate impact. That is a site-dependent trade-off, not a universal ranking of cooling systems.
Google also described a low-water cooling alternative under development in 2022 as having the potential to use up to 50% less data-center water. That is a company-stated potential, not a verified general result or a guarantee for other facilities.
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Assess closed-loop liquid cooling for new builds or major retrofits
Liquid cooling can recirculate coolant at servers, racks, or chips, but it does not eliminate the need to reject the heat from the facility. DOE FEMP’s example schematic shows heat moving from IT racks through a closed water loop to a coolant distribution unit, then to a condenser-water loop and cooling tower. In that configuration, the rack-side loop is closed while the facility still uses a cooling tower; the complete design determines water demand.
Microsoft says its new data-center designs beginning in August 2024 use closed-loop liquid cooling, and that it aims to make zero-water evaporation its primary cooling method across its owned portfolio. In a June 2026 post, Microsoft described direct-to-chip liquid cooling with zero water evaporation for the AI data-center design covered there. These are Microsoft design and operating claims with stated scope, not proof that every liquid-cooled facility uses no water under all operating conditions.
Microsoft estimated in 2025 that a new design would avoid 125,000 cubic meters of cooling water annually per facility. In 2026, it reported nearly a 90% improvement in WUE compared with its first-generation data centers in the early 2000s. Both are company-reported figures; neither is an independent, sector-wide result or a controlled comparison with other operators.
What to verify before selecting a design
- Trace the full heat path from the IT equipment through coolant distribution to the final heat-rejection equipment.
- Specify whether the claim concerns rack-side coolant circulation, all facility cooling, or water evaporation during normal operation.
- Check the design against local climate, workload heat density, reliability requirements, retrofit complexity, and the available water source.
- Compare water use, energy use, and emissions using the same boundaries and reporting period; operator claims about different designs are not automatically comparable.
Can a data center use zero water for cooling?
A zero-water claim is meaningful only when it specifies its boundary and operating conditions. A design may target zero evaporation in its cooling system while still using water elsewhere at the site, or may rely on a particular heat-rejection design and climate. Ask whether the claim covers the whole facility or only a closed loop, whether it applies in normal operation, and what happens under other operating conditions. The Microsoft examples above illustrate one operator’s stated designs; they do not establish that all liquid cooling or all data centers can operate with zero cooling-water use.
There is no established independent, current, apples-to-apples lifecycle comparison across the cooling systems and operators discussed here. Compare site water withdrawals and consumption, water source and local stress, WUE definition, energy and emissions, seasonal suitability, reliability, and retrofit requirements rather than choosing a technology on one metric alone.
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