Treat, not trick, data centre water
In 2002, Singapore's PM Goh Chok Tong drank a bottle of NEWater, a brand of recycled water treated from sewage to demonstrate that it was safe, and of high drinking quality. NEWater, used water passed through microfiltration, reverse osmosis and ultraviolet disinfection, exceeds WHO drinking water standards.Little of it, though, is drunk. Most goes to wafer fabrication plants, because semiconductors demand water far purer than humans do. The fabs polish it further, until water stops being a beverage and becomes a solvent. Every chip in every data centre has been rinsed thousands of times in water of this kind.Also read: Delhi data centre fire sparks nationwide operations safety reviewA municipal corporation in one of India's metros has priced treated sewage at ₹7.50 a kl for a proposed hyperscale data centre. The response was a rally, a demand for a stay, and a headline that travelled: a city short of 30 mn l a day (MLD) will hand 12 MLD to servers.The 30 MLD shortfall is of po...