Which is more efficient? AC or DC distribution

The quest to make data centers more efficient has led to some innovative power and cooling technology. One proposal has been to convert data center power architectures to DC. It turns out there are five methods of power distribution that are realistic for data centers, including two basic types of AC and three of DC. These types are explained in a new white paper from APC called "AC vs DC Power Distribution for Data Centers."

One key finding of the paper one AC and DC method in particular offer superior electrical efficiency. The paper compares the two techniques, one of which is likely to become the preferred method of distributing power in future data centers.

Changes in power distribution efficiency affect total power consumption of the center in mathematically complex ways because of two factors: Variations in distribution efficiency affect the heating load and consequently the air conditioning power consumption. Also, there are significant power loads in the data center that do not get power through the power distribution system. APC's white paper explains these effects in detail and shows how improvements in electrical power distribution efficiency can reduce total electrical power consumption.

Get the white paper here:

http://viewer.media.bitpipe.com/979246117_954/1202325098_8/WP-127.pdf