Experimental and Numerical Investigation of the Effects of Passive Radiative Cooling-Air Layer Composite Envelope Structure on Building Energy Consumption for Data Center Rooms

Rong Gao, Weijin Sun, Yuxin Hao, Zhonglu He, Chunmei Guo (), Xi Chen () and Chong Meng
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Rong Gao: School of Energy and Safety Engineering, Tianjin Chengjian University, Tianjin 300384, China
Weijin Sun: School of Energy and Safety Engineering, Tianjin Chengjian University, Tianjin 300384, China
Yuxin Hao: School of Energy and Safety Engineering, Tianjin Chengjian University, Tianjin 300384, China
Zhonglu He: School of Energy and Safety Engineering, Tianjin Chengjian University, Tianjin 300384, China
Chunmei Guo: School of Energy and Safety Engineering, Tianjin Chengjian University, Tianjin 300384, China
Xi Chen: Department of Mechanical and Automation Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 999077, China
Chong Meng: China Academy of Building Research, Beijing 100013, China

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 19, 1-26

Abstract: The energy consumption of data centers has become increasingly prominent. To address the conflict between the characteristic of inhibiting heat dissipation for traditional insulated building envelopes and the cooling demands of data center rooms all year, this study proposes a novel composite envelope structure for data center rooms that integrates passive radiative cooling with air-layer insulation (PRC-AL). The results demonstrate that under internal heat source power densities of 300–1000 W/m 2 without additional cooling measures, the PRC-AL composite envelope structure reduces indoor air temperatures by 16.16–30.81% compared to the traditional insulation structure (TIS). Meanwhile, the application of the PRC-AL composite envelope structure leads to significant reductions in annual cumulative cooling load per unit area: 1617.69 kWh/m 2 in Harbin, 1359.49 kWh/m 2 in Tianjin, 1135.25 kWh/m 2 in Shanghai, 994.97 kWh/m 2 in Guiyang, and 918.70 kWh/m 2 in Guangzhou. These findings indicate that the proposed PRC-AL composite envelope structure not only effectively lowers indoor air temperatures but also reduces cooling loads in data center rooms, providing an efficient pathway for energy conservation in data centers. This research offers a theoretical foundation for optimizing the design of building envelopes in data centers and contributes to sustainable development in the digital infrastructure sector.

Keywords: passive radiative cooling; air-layer; composite envelope structure; data center room; energy saving (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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