Ecology & Heat Cycles
We don't just cool servers; we harvest energy. Our "Heat-First" architecture ensures that every joule of electricity performs work twice: first as computation, then as heat for the community.
The Golden Rule: Reuse → Store → Reject
Our operating system is hard-coded with a strict hierarchy of thermal management:
Reuse
Direct heat transfer to buildings (winter) or greenhouses (summer). This is the "Heat Utilization Factor" (HUF).
Store
Charge stratified thermal tanks to buffer diurnal peaks and smooth the mismatch between compute load and heat demand.
Reject
Only when all useful sinks are full do we reject heat to the bay, strictly monitoring environmental impact (ΔT).
Non-Contact Loop Architecture
Safety and separation are paramount. We use two completely separate fluid circuits that exchange heat via titanium plate heat exchangers. **Fluids never mix.**
The IT Loop (Source)
Closed loop collecting heat from servers.
Temp: Inlet 30–45°C → Outlet 45–60°C.
The Building Loop (Sink)
Community district loop. Can be boosted by heat pumps to 65–75°C for legacy radiators if needed.
Safety Specs
- Isolation: Hydraulic separation via Plate HX.
- Backup: Dry coolers activate if loops fail.
- Legionella: DHW pre-heat includes final safeguards.
Seasonal Sinks
❄️ Winter Mode
Primary Sink: Public Buildings.
Priority is given to the Clinic, School, and Town Hall. Server heat replaces diesel boilers. If 45–60°C is insufficient for old radiators, the central heat pump booster kicks in.
☀️ Summer Mode
Primary Sink: Food Security.
Heat is directed to large community greenhouses to extend the growing season in the subarctic. Thermal storage is used to smooth out nightly demands vs daily heat production.
Water & Environmental Guard
Traditional data centers consume vast amounts of water for evaporative cooling. Kristal Farms is different. We operate on a zero-consumption basis for cooling.
Water Usage Effectiveness is near zero. Closed loops mean no evaporation. We borrow cold, we don't consume water.
Automated guards prevent thermal pollution. If discharge water temp variance (ΔT) exceeds limits, compute is throttled.
We track every liter of diesel not burned. This is our primary carbon offset metric, measuring both power and heat savings.