A colocation data center exhausts 80,000 m3/h of warm return air at about 35 C. EN159 recovered sensible heat with a plate exchanger to preheat incoming cool air.
The Challenge
The data hall needed cold supply air. Return air carried recoverable heat that was vented. The owner required recovery with no moisture transfer into the supply.
Why Plate Air-to-Air Recovery
Data centers use plate sensible recovery or indirect evaporative cooling; rotary wheels are excluded because they can move humidity and contaminants between supply and exhaust. A plate keeps streams separate and recovers sensible heat reliably.
The EN159 Solution
EN159 BXB plate modules, 80,000 m3/h, supply pre-cooled or preheated as needed, 70 percent effectiveness, aluminium plates.
Measured Results
- Recovered heat: about 0.9 MW
- Return-air heat recovered to supply
- Cooling energy cut by 21 percent
- Estimated payback: 16 months
Compliance and Selection Notes
Plate sensible recovery, separated streams, no rotary wheel. Data-center duty excludes enthalpy wheels.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why no rotary wheel in a data center?
A wheel can move humidity and particulates between streams; plate keeps them separate for stable hall conditions.
Plate or indirect evaporative?
Both are valid; plate sensible recovery is used here with the existing air path.
Related Guides and Tools
Plate Heat Exchangers · Data Center and Battery Heat Recovery · Air-to-Air Heat Exchangers · Cross-Flow in Data Center IEC · Indirect Cooling in Data Centers · Contact EN159
Get a Site-Specific Recovery Estimate
Talk to an EN159 application engineer about your data center cooling exhaust stream. Call 15753355505 or visit our contact page for a site-specific recovery estimate.