Sustainable growth of data centres: an interdisciplinary approach

Data centres are significant consumers of energy and water, and are a form of critical infrastructure that is not yet well provided for in hot and/or highly variable climates.

For the wide range of climate zones in Australia and in our region, innovative technological and planning solutions are needed that are responsive to constraints on water and energy, and are well integrated with other backbone infrastructure.

Countries such as Singapore are on the front foot with this, with public-private sector collaboration critical for the development of purpose-built sustainable infrastructure. In July, that uses hybrid air and liquid cooling, plus a hydrogen fuel cell for portion of the power supply.

��¼� has transdisciplinary expertise that can assist with advancing Australia's approach, bringing together key researchers in Artificial Intelligence, energy, city planning, industrial decarbonisation and water. Our experts are prepared to work together, and with industry and government stakeholders, to develop unique solutions that fit the Australian economy and that are transferable to other markets. 

Research themes may include the integration of renewals, net zero water cooling solutions, heat transfer solutions, and planning and certification frameworks.

��¼�'s expertise

Public perception on data centres

The ��¼� Faculty of Arts, Design and Architecture is researching how the public currently perceives data centres.

Sustainable water and energy use

The UNSW Global Water Institute and members of the ��¼� water community are researching the water demands of data centres and the most sustainable approaches to critical cooling systems.

A project led by ��¼� Engineering, bringing together teams from Mechanical and Chemical Engineering in partnership with the NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) is addressing the critical sustainability challenges of data centres, particularly their growing water and energy demands. As the sector rapidly expands to support AI, cloud computing, and Australia’s sovereign digital future, the team is delivering valuable insights into how cooling systems contribute to resource use, and more importantly, how this can be mitigated.

Researchers are quantifying the significant water consumption associated with current cooling methods and assessing its impact on existing water infrastructure. The project also explores optimal site suitability for future data centres using GIS-based analysis that accounts for land topography, proximity to energy and water infrastructure, network nodes, heritage protections, and Indigenous land considerations.

Beyond this, the team is investigating innovative pathways to reuse waste heat, such as integration with nearby industrial users or thermal-driven water treatment processes, potentially transforming water-intensive data centres into net water producers.

By projecting sector growth alongside evolving cooling technologies, the ��¼� Engineering team is offering government and industry clear, data-driven pathways to reduce resource intensity. The work highlights both the risks of inaction (e.g., water demand potentially doubling by 2030 in NSW) and the long-term benefits of proactive, sustainable design in alignment with national net-zero and resilience goals.

Urban planning

The ��¼� City Futures Research Centre is exploring how the increasing demand for data centres can be sustainably accommodated within urban planning.

Power grids, renewables, storage and load management

��¼�’s vast and varied expertise is addressing the challanges that come with sustainably powering data centres while also considering reliability, affordability and equity.

The ��¼� Energy Institute connects communities and commercial stakeholders with cutting-edge energy research and solutions.

Data centre trends

Artificial Intelligence expansion

The ��¼� AI Institute has extensive expertise and capabilities in AI development, application, and translation. A frontrunner in advancing the field, the ��¼� AI Institute is driven by various objectives, including the facilitation of interdisciplinary collaborations in teaching and research, active engagement in public dialogue on AI, and the promotion of research commercialisation.

��¼� announced as home for NSW’s decarbonisation hub

The University will play a vital role in helping the state government achieve its goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2050 .

Scientia Professor Vlado Perkovic, Provost at ��¼�, speaking at the opening session of the 2025 State of Energy Research Conference

��¼� hosts energy conference

At the 2025 State of Energy Research Conference, researchers examined the dual impact of artificial intelligence, highlighting its potential to accelerate the shift to renewables while also warning of the significant strain AI data centres place on the electricity grid.

Data center with a cooling mist system, fine water vapor helping to maintain optimal temperatures around servers.

Dr Rob Taylor and Dr Amr Omar received a $100K AUD research grant from the NSW Department of Planning and Environment for the development of an evaporative cooling roadmap.

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