The market
The global computer market market should reach almost $ 48 billion in 2011, compared to 42.2 billion in 2009. This corresponds to 7.6 million servers. The first quarter of 2011 has already confirmed growth of 8.7% in volume, while the high -end segment increased by 14.2%. This is good news after the company suffered in 2009 from a marked slowdown in the economy with an 18 % drop in demand compared to 2008. The concept of cloud computing, which consists of Providing on -demand data and services using computers instead of a local server should further stimulate servers. One of the major changes in the constantly evolving Internet system is that an increasing number of servers are exclusively dedicated to video. This market segment should go from almost nothing two years ago to 2.3 billion dollars in 2012. The growth of data centers is explosive. A company like Dell doubles the number of its data service centers in China, going from one to two thousand in only one year, saying that 60 % of all Cloud service centers in China are based on Dell. The server market leader (all types combined) is Hewlett Packard, which holds 31.5 % of the market, followed closely by IBM with 29.2 %. Oracle, a newcomer in the field, acquired 6.5 %. The arrival of server parks has a price: 1.2 % of all electrical energy in the United States is consumed by servers, which represents 0.5 % of all greenhouse gas emissions. Intel is, with 100,000 servers, the largest server user declared in the world. Facebook had more than 60,000 servers in 2010, but Google lets the world guess the number of servers it uses, with some pretender that it has now exceeded one million. Microsoft could have up to 225,000, Yahoo and Ebay each operating at more than 50,000 units. Telecommunications companies are minor users with only 20 to 25,000 servers (!) For giant operators like Verizon and AT&T.
Innovation
The engine of innovation for servers was the combination of the increase in computers and miniaturization. The preconfiguration of grouped servers has also become a key element in the search for efficiency. Energy efficiency has been the subject of particular attention, in particular thanks to the design of the components. The world of mobile electronics has realized that Bluetooth technology is technically very efficient, but that it can be considered the "hummer" of communications since it makes excessive energy use. The low design thermal power (TDP) has become a key area, pushing the requirements by processor from 35 to 40 W up to 15 W at present, or even less than 10 W by 2012. However, the main Défi is that the network provides electricity by alternating current (CA) while all consumption is in direct current (CC). The conversion of alternating current into direct current implies loss of efficiency and, although this has created a huge market for alternating current converters in direct current, not only it increases costs, but it also makes energy efficiency difficult To be reached, because at least 10 % of alternative energy is converted into heat and is therefore lost. Worse still, excess heat should be eliminated, which requires that all servers are excessively air -conditioned. Umesh Mishra is a professor at the University of California in Santa Barbara and an expert in physics. He has made important scientific contributions to the design of high -speed transistors. Mr. Mishra has developed an expertise in power amplification and concluded that he could design computer chips to convert the alternating current into direct current. Instead of losing 10 percent energy in the form of lost heat, it could now get +99 %, and have almost no heat loss. Such very effective converters could reduce the demand for air conditioners that purr in data centers only to get rid of the residual heat produced by light and servers. He calculated that if his solution was applied to the entire industry, his innovation would save hundreds of electricity terawatt hours. Las Vegas - underlines Professor Mishra - only consumes 33 terawatt hours!
The first cash flow
Mr. Umesh and his colleagues then created Transphorm, a company which aims to produce fleas which will convert the alternating current into direct current, thus eliminating the need for chargers which are also rectifiers. Transphorm has received $ 38 million in investors including Google, a company that has already decided to create a 12 V DC rescue for each server. Google went further and created its data centers inside standard shipping containers of 40 feet, each with 1,160 servers with an absorbed power of 250 kW, all based on direct current. Data centers are generally based on without interruption (ASI) power supplies, which are giant batteries that start when the main supply breaks down. The inverter works much faster than traditional diesel generators, which causes disturbances. However, the integration of the power supply into the server is cheaper, which makes it possible to match the cost directly to the server, to eliminate the waste of capacity and to adapt to local needs.
The opportunity
While Imesh Mishra plans that its prototype factory will be operational in 2012, the real change that should occur is not to have to worry about conversion at all. The substitution of something by "nothing" is one of the fundamental principles of the blue economy. The objective should be to replace CA/CC converters with any converter at all. This is only viable when the whole network, including the basic load, works in direct current. After all, servers, laptops, LED lights, mobile phones, electric motors and vehicles, even the refrigerators operate in direct current. Solar panels, piezoelectricity and many renewable energies are also based on direct current. So why look for expensive inverters (often called chargers -but whose main function is to rectify 110 or 220 AC in 6 -12 or 24 DC), when we could get around this ineffectiveness of the network? The current revolution is that innovations in alternating to DC converters are simply not necessary since renewable energy could be produced and consumed locally, thereby eliminating the need for intelligent macro-rings. Central energy in buildings could be fueled by multiple sources, as described in scenarios 12 (aero -lalastic vibrations), 40 (electricity by osmosis), 42 (electricity per tap), 53 (innovative solar energy) and Piezo-electrical, thanks to the compression force of the building which can produce up to 6 V CC for each tonne of compression. While the assembly of compression panels is still at the conceptual stage, it is clear that the technique of manufacturing photovoltaic solar cells is very similar to that of compression cells, where silicon is replaced by quartz, crystalline silk Or even sugar and salt. The only condition for success is that the building moves slightly - at the molecular level - and this can be very easily reached if we rethink the roof. The superstructure of a building will rather look like a tree with a large awning protecting the base of rain and sun, but offering the flexibility to move to the rhythm of the wind and the earth in order to exploit the integrated power in the rotation From the earth, which Kepler has already proven centuries ago. Solutions inspired by natural systems. This new standard would trigger a formidable wave of corporate spirit, stimulated by energy efficiency, making renewable energies more competitive since they are not obliged to go through the CC cycle to CA, then from CA to CC. The most important thing is that all electronics can be designed to make a leap forward in terms of energy efficiency. A multiple of tiny electric currents - often at a rate of 70 thousands - which have never been considered commercially viable because reversing them at 110 or 220 V would be too expensive and too ineffective, now becomes economically viable since the inversion n ' It is necessary that up to 6 - 12 or 24 V. This is comparable to what is necessary to put the energy of solar cells on the network. The great advantage is that these currents can be used locally, without the need for an electrical network, transforming the weight and structural design of the basic load buildings which will provide everything necessary locally, and will provide electricity to through a smart network. It is ultimately what the blue economy is: use what you have, see the connections and then make it happen!
