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For sustained AI racks in the roughly 50–120 kW range, direct-to-chip liquid cooling is usually the practical primary method. Air cooling remains valuable for lower-density racks and for the heat produced by memory, storage, networking and power equipment. Most existing facilities should assess a hybrid retrofit, while new AI halls should compare direct-to-chip, immersion and hybrid designs together with heat rejection, water strategy, structural loading and electrical capacity.
The decision in one view
Cooling choice is driven first by heat density, not by whether a facility has an “AI” label. A legacy CPU rack commonly operates at 5–10 kW. GPU clusters are commonly described in the 40–100 kW-per-rack range, and some current accelerator configurations reach 120 kW or more. As density rises, the air volume, fan power, coil capacity and floor area required to move heat become the limiting factors.
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| Architecture | Where it fits best | Thermal capability and limits | Main trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air cooling | Legacy 5–10 kW racks, moderate mixed workloads and facilities with a validated airflow envelope | The U.S. Department of Defense report says traditional air cooling becomes ineffective beyond roughly 10–15 kW per rack; high-density GPU airflow can exceed practical fan, heat-exchanger and space limits | Simplest operations, but diminishing thermal headroom and rising fan/chiller energy at high density |
| Direct-to-chip liquid (DTC) | Sustained GPU-heavy racks, commonly about 60–120 kW in current deployments | Cold plates remove heat directly from GPUs and CPUs; residual components still need air or another heat path | Requires cold plates, manifolds, coolant distribution units (CDUs), piping, controls, leak detection and outdoor heat rejection |
| Single-phase immersion | Very dense or acoustically constrained systems where servers can be serviced in a fluid tank | McKinsey reports about 100 kW capability for single-phase designs, depending on implementation | Fluid handling, tank access, compatibility and service procedures change substantially |
| Two-phase immersion | Specialized very-high-density installations | About 100 kW is reported for some systems, with more than 150 kW for some dual-phase designs | Fluid selection, emissions control, safety, environmental compliance and potential PFAS concerns require careful procurement |
| Hybrid air/liquid | Most retrofits and mixed AI, storage and networking environments | DTC handles GPU/CPU heat while CRAC or CRAH systems remove the remaining 10–30% from memory, storage, networking and power equipment | Balances density and compatibility, but leaves two cooling systems to operate and maintain |
ASHRAE’s 2026 AI Data Center Energy Performance Framework recommends purpose-built technology cooling systems when AI densities routinely exceed approximately 50–120 kW per rack. That is a design range, not a universal switch point: inlet temperature limits, server layout, workload transients and available heat rejection can move the practical threshold.
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Legacy air envelopes are much smaller
A 5–10 kW CPU rack can generally be served by a conventional raised-floor or overhead-air design if airflow paths are controlled. At 10–15 kW, the DoD guidance identifies a point beyond which traditional air cooling becomes ineffective. This does not mean every 15 kW rack immediately requires liquid; it means that simply adding more room airflow is no longer a dependable scaling strategy.
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GPU racks concentrate heat in a few components
Training and inference servers place a large fraction of rack power in accelerators and CPUs. Those chips have small thermal interfaces and strict temperature limits. Increasing room airflow can cool surrounding equipment, but it does not remove heat from the silicon as directly as a cold plate or immersion fluid. Fan power also rises as the design pushes more air through tighter server heatsinks.
Transients matter as much as averages
AI workloads can change power quickly when jobs start, synchronize or switch between training phases. A rack that averages 80 kW may impose much higher short-duration cooling and electrical demands. The design must therefore check peak rack power, CDU and pump capacity, chiller or dry-cooler response, UPS headroom and control-system response—not only a monthly average.
Rack count can hide facility limits
Installing liquid-capable racks does not create additional utility capacity. A hall can run out of switchgear, transformer, generator, UPS or heat-rejection capacity before the IT floor is full. Conversely, a low-PUE cooling upgrade can leave stranded electrical or structural capacity if rack placement and distribution are not redesigned together.
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Air cooling
Computer-room air-conditioning (CRAC) or computer-room air-handler (CRAH) units circulate room air through server fans, capture the warmed air and reject heat through chilled-water, refrigerant, dry-cooler or evaporative equipment. The approach is familiar: no coolant loop enters the IT rack, technicians can service standard servers, and mixed hardware is easy to accommodate.
Its constraints are physical. High-density racks require more cubic feet per minute, larger coils, shorter airflow paths and stronger separation of supply and return air. Fan energy grows, hot spots become harder to prevent, and the air system may need to be operated at conditions that reduce chiller efficiency. Even if chip temperatures remain within limits, the resulting power overhead can erode usable IT capacity.
Direct-to-chip liquid
Cold plates attach to the hottest GPUs and CPUs. A facility loop feeds a CDU, which isolates or conditions the technology loop and distributes coolant through rack manifolds. Heat travels from the chip into the liquid, then through the CDU to chilled water, a dry cooler, a cooling tower or another outdoor heat-rejection system.
DTC is the most commonly deployed liquid approach for high-density AI according to McKinsey. It is not a complete replacement for air: memory, drives, network adapters, voltage-regulator components and power supplies may remain air-cooled. ASHRAE and AWS describe this multimodal arrangement as a normal hybrid pattern, with air systems handling the residual 10–30% of heat.
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Immersion cooling
In single-phase immersion, servers sit in a dielectric fluid that remains liquid while absorbing heat. Pumps move the warmed fluid through a heat exchanger. In two-phase systems, the fluid boils at the component surface and condenses on a cooled surface inside the tank. Immersion can remove heat without high-speed server fans and can support compact, very dense layouts.
McKinsey cites approximately 100 kW capability for both single-phase and some two-phase systems, with more than 150 kW for some dual-phase designs. These are reported capabilities, not guarantees for every tank, server design or climate. Fluid chemistry, seals, cables, fire protection, filtration, tank access and environmental rules must be validated for the specific equipment. Some two-phase fluids raise PFAS-related concerns, making fluid selection and end-of-life handling procurement requirements rather than afterthoughts.
Hybrid air/liquid
A hybrid design places liquid cold plates on GPUs and CPUs while retaining CRAC or CRAH airflow for non-liquid-cooled hardware. It avoids forcing every storage, network or power component into a liquid-compatible design. The trade-off is operational: operators must manage both an air plant and a liquid distribution system, with separate alarms, maintenance procedures and commissioning tests.
Energy, water and performance: what actually improves
Cooling electricity and PUE
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory reports that direct-to-chip liquid cooling generally reduces total cooling-related energy use in heat-dense systems. The mechanism is straightforward: liquid transports more heat per unit volume than air, so fans and air-moving equipment do less work, and heat can sometimes be rejected at higher temperatures.
A California Energy Commission demonstration page estimates that a RackCDU project could reduce cooling energy by 60–80% and server energy by 5–10%. Those figures are project estimates, not a guaranteed result for every deployment; they depend on the baseline air system, climate, supply temperatures, pump and CDU efficiency, and the heat-rejection plant. The same commission notes that approximately 40% of electricity in the California data-center context is used for cooling, illustrating why the cooling plant can materially affect total facility power.
Use PUE to measure total facility energy divided by IT energy, but keep the boundaries clear. A liquid loop can lower room-fan and chiller energy while adding pump, CDU and controls consumption. Measure the complete plant, not only the rack-level pump or the cooling tower.
Water is a heat-rejection decision
Liquid inside a rack does not automatically mean low water use. Water performance depends mainly on how heat leaves the facility:
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- Evaporative heat rejection: cooling towers can be efficient but consume makeup water and require blowdown management.
- Dry heat rejection: air-cooled chillers or dry coolers can minimize operational water use but may require more fan and compressor energy, especially in hot weather.
- Closed-loop systems: a sealed technology loop can avoid routine water consumption inside the IT row, while the external plant may still use water.
- Heat reuse: higher liquid return temperatures can make heat recovery for nearby buildings or industrial loads more practical, if a suitable sink exists.
Report water usage effectiveness (WUE) and, where relevant, water withdrawal or water-use intensity (WUI) alongside PUE. A lower PUE is not automatically a better regional outcome if it depends on scarce water. Add carbon-use effectiveness (CUE) and heat-reuse metrics when comparing sites with different electricity mixes or reuse opportunities.
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LBNL also states that direct-to-chip cooling can keep chips below throttling thresholds so jobs finish faster. The benefit is operational: stable temperatures reduce the chance that accelerators lower clock speed under sustained load. Evaluate this with throughput, job completion time and useful work per facility watt, not only inlet temperature.
Capital, space and retrofit implications
What a liquid system adds
A DTC installation normally adds cold plates, quick-disconnects, rack manifolds, CDUs, pumps, sensors, controls, leak detection, water-treatment or coolant-management equipment and outdoor heat rejection. The facility also needs routes for supply and return piping, service clearances and a method to isolate a rack or row without stopping unrelated equipment.
Immersion adds tanks, dielectric-fluid storage, lifting or draining equipment, filtration and a revised process for removing servers. A tank may reduce server-fan noise and room airflow, but it changes how technicians handle drives, cables, seals and field replacements.
Structural loading cannot be assumed
ASHRAE’s AI retrofit framework warns that a fully loaded liquid-cooled rack can exceed 1,800 kg (4,000 lb). Confirm slab capacity, point loads, seismic anchoring, ramp and elevator limits, and the weight of CDUs or tanks. A rack that fits the physical footprint may still require structural reinforcement or a different equipment arrangement.
Electrical capacity must be modeled with cooling
Liquid cooling can free some air-handling capacity, but pumps, CDUs, chillers and dry coolers still consume power. Model rack IT load, cooling auxiliaries, UPS and switchgear headroom together. Include startup currents, redundancy modes and failure operation. A design that reaches a nominal 120 kW rack but loses N+1 capacity during a pump or CDU failure may not meet the required availability target.
How to retrofit an air-cooled data center for GPUs
A retrofit is usually safest as a hybrid program rather than an attempt to convert every rack at once.
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- Inventory the actual load. Record each rack’s sustained and peak kW, GPU/CPU model, memory and storage population, network hardware, inlet and outlet temperatures, fan speeds and workload schedule. Separate measured values from nameplate ratings.
- Map the facility envelope. Verify supply-air temperature, airflow volume, containment, CRAH/CRAC capacity, chiller approach temperatures, floor loading, electrical distribution and available cooling redundancy. Identify hot spots and unused electrical or structural capacity.
- Classify racks by cooling need. Keep validated 5–10 kW mixed racks on air where practical. Flag racks approaching the 10–15 kW air limitation and any sustained 40–100 kW GPU rack for liquid evaluation.
- Choose the liquid boundary. Decide which GPUs and CPUs receive cold plates, which components remain air-cooled, and where CDUs and manifolds will sit. Confirm that server boards, hose connections, quick-disconnects and warranties support the selected arrangement.
- Design heat rejection and water strategy. Size the technology loop, CDU, pumps and outdoor equipment for peak load and redundancy. Compare evaporative, dry and closed-loop options using PUE, WUE/WUI, CUE and heat-reuse potential.
- Check structure and routing. Validate the 1,800 kg-plus rack possibility, pipe supports, floor penetrations, seismic restraints, drainage, spill containment and access for replacing a CDU or isolating a rack.
- Upgrade monitoring and protection. Install temperature, flow, pressure, conductivity and leak sensors with alarm escalation. Define automatic isolation behavior and ensure a leak does not disable an entire row unnecessarily.
- Pilot one representative row. Commission a row containing the most demanding GPU servers, realistic networking and the intended workload. Measure chip temperature, throttling, pump and fan energy, water use, job throughput and failure responses before scaling.
- Commission in operating modes. Test normal, peak, maintenance, loss-of-pump, loss-of-CDU and loss-of-air scenarios. Verify that remaining air cooling can carry the non-liquid heat and that workloads fail over as designed.
- Train operations staff. Document coolant handling, sampling, filter changes, hose replacement, leak response, server draining or isolation, and escalation ownership. Treat the liquid plant as critical infrastructure, not as an accessory to the server team.
Designing a new AI hall
Start with a rack-density and growth model
Define the initial rack range, expected next-generation density and workload mix. McKinsey reports average AI-ready density rising from 8 kW to 17 kW and potentially reaching 30 kW by 2027, while citing up to 120 kW for NVIDIA GB200 systems. Those figures show why a hall designed only for today’s average can become constrained quickly.
Reserve physical and utility capacity
Lay out CDU rooms, pipe corridors, service aisles, heat-rejection equipment, electrical rooms and expansion zones before the first rack arrives. Reserve transformer, switchgear, UPS and generator capacity for both IT growth and cooling auxiliaries. Confirm floor loading for the heaviest future rack, not merely the first deployment.
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Specify liquid supply and return temperatures, allowable approach temperatures, flow rates, filtration, coolant chemistry and acceptable leak response. Decide whether the required topology is N, N+1 or another availability level for pumps, CDUs, chillers and controls. A higher return temperature may improve dry-cooler or heat-reuse options, but only if every component remains within its thermal envelope.
Design for mixed hardware
Even an AI hall contains boot drives, storage, network switches, optical modules, memory and power electronics that may not be liquid-cooled. Retain an air path sized for the residual 10–30% load and for temporary operation when liquid equipment is isolated. Provide blanking panels, containment and airflow controls so bypass air does not undermine efficiency.
Reliability, maintenance and leak management
- Leak risk: use dripless quick-disconnects, double-check hose routing, place sensors at manifolds and rack bases, and define automatic isolation zones. Water detection without a tested response procedure is not protection.
- Coolant quality: monitor conductivity, corrosion inhibitors, particulate loading and biological control according to the coolant specification. Contamination can restrict cold plates and damage pumps.
- Serviceability: maintain isolation valves and bypasses so one rack or CDU can be serviced without draining a whole loop. Stock hoses, fittings, filters and compatible cold plates.
- Air-side residue: keep filters, CRAC/CRAH units and containment maintained even after DTC deployment; the remaining memory, storage, network and power heat still requires air removal.
- Immersion procedures: train staff on fluid exposure, lifting tanks, draining, filtration, cable handling and server compatibility. Confirm fire, occupational-safety and environmental requirements for the chosen fluid.
- Controls and alarms: trend flow, pressure, supply and return temperature, pump status and leak signals. Integrate alarms with the facility-management system and test them under realistic load.
When each option is the right choice
Choose air when
- Rack density stays within a measured airflow and thermal envelope.
- Workloads are mixed or moderate rather than continuously GPU-saturated.
- Operational simplicity, existing technician skills or water avoidance outweigh density gains.
- The facility has enough floor area, fan power, heat-exchanger capacity and electrical headroom for future growth.
Choose direct-to-chip liquid when
- GPU-heavy racks sustain roughly 50–120 kW and air cannot maintain temperatures without excessive airflow or fan/chiller energy.
- Thermal throttling threatens job throughput or rack consolidation.
- You can provide CDUs, manifolds, piping, leak detection, structural capacity and trained operators.
- A hybrid air path can handle the remaining non-liquid heat.
Choose immersion when
- Very high density, acoustic isolation or specialized thermal performance justifies a different service model.
- The organization accepts tank-based maintenance and fluid-management procedures.
- Fluid compatibility, safety, environmental compliance and end-of-life disposal are documented before purchase.
Choose hybrid for most retrofits
Hybrid is usually the least disruptive path when an existing hall contains standard servers, storage and networking alongside new GPU racks. It lets the facility target liquid at the dominant heat sources while preserving proven air infrastructure for the rest. The price is dual-system complexity, which must be reflected in staffing, spare parts, monitoring and commissioning plans.
Metrics and acceptance tests
Require vendors and integrators to state the boundary of every performance claim. Record:
- IT load, rack peak and average kW, and workload throughput.
- Chip, liquid supply, liquid return, server inlet and room return temperatures.
- Fan, pump, CDU, chiller, dry-cooler and cooling-tower electricity.
- PUE, WUE, WUI, CUE and any heat-reuse output.
- Water makeup, blowdown and treatment quantities where an evaporative plant is used.
- Throttling events, job completion time and accelerator utilization.
- Response to loss of a pump, CDU, air handler, network connection or utility feed.
Run tests at representative and maximum planned density, including workload transients. A lower cooling-energy reading is not sufficient if it comes with lower throughput, reduced redundancy, excessive water use or maintenance that cannot be performed safely.
Common mistakes and how to avoid them
Using a single kW threshold as a law
The 10–15 kW air limitation, 40–100 kW GPU range and 50–120 kW ASHRAE technology-cooling range describe different contexts. Treat them as planning markers. Validate the actual server, climate, containment, supply temperature, redundancy and workload before approving a design.
Comparing only rack-level cooling energy
Include CDUs, pumps, controls, chillers, towers, dry coolers, water treatment and backup modes. Compare the whole facility and useful compute output.
Assuming liquid eliminates air
Most DTC systems still need air for 10–30% of rack heat and for adjacent equipment. Removing or undersizing the air system can create hot spots in memory, networking and power components.
Ignoring structural and service logistics
Check the weight of loaded racks and tanks, the route from delivery dock to hall, lifting equipment, pipe supports, spill containment and technician access before installation.
Scaling without a pilot
Commission one representative row under realistic AI load. Verify temperatures, throttling, water, energy, alarms and failure behavior before repeating the design across the hall.
Bottom line for an AI data-center project
Air cooling remains the sensible choice for validated low- and moderate-density racks, but it is not a dependable primary strategy for sustained 50–120 kW GPU racks. Direct-to-chip liquid cooling offers the clearest path to thermal headroom and lower cooling-related energy in that range, while hybrid designs are usually the practical answer for existing mixed facilities. Immersion can support exceptional densities, but only when the organization is prepared for fluid, safety and service-process changes. Select the architecture by modeling the complete facility—power, structure, water, heat rejection, maintenance, reliability and compute throughput—not by comparing a rack’s cooling method in isolation.
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