新型支持智能电网的UPS可以助力数据中心运营方实现可持续发展目标，带来新收入并降低能源支持。微软和伊顿称他们已经率先应用蓄电池后备技术，助力智能电网消纳更多清洁能源。

New smart-grid-ready UPSes can help data center operators reach sustainability goals, generate new revenue and reduce their energy bill. Microsoft and Eaton say they have successfully piloted the battery backup technology to help power grids shift to renewable energy.

Wylie Wong | Sep 08, 2021

UPS(不间断电源)可保护 IT 设备并在停电时保障数据中心正常运行。新一代 UPS 远非平时待机状态只在紧急情况下起作用，而是积极主动，使数据中心能够以更可持续和更具成本效益的方式运行，同时支持响应更广泛的探索，促进电网现代化以使用更多可再生能源。

Uninterruptible power supplies protect IT equipment and keep data centers running when power outages occur. But rather than sit idle until there’s an emergency, a new generation of UPSes are proactive and enable data centers to operate more sustainably and cost-effectively, while supporting a broader effort to modernize power grids to use more renewable energy.

随着电网运营公司开始整合更多可再生能源，这可能会导致电网的不稳定和波动，因为风能和太阳能在任何一天产生的清洁能源数量都是不可预测的。

As grid operators begin to integrate more renewable sources of energy, it can cause instability and fluctuations in the power grid because the amount of clean energy produced by wind and solar power on any given day can be unpredictable.

Omdia 公司云和数据中心研究首席分析师Moises Levy表示，为平稳电网，数据中心运营方可以使用存储于 UPS 蓄电池中的能量，在缺乏足够的可再生能源产生时对其进行平衡，向电网侧供电。

To stabilize the electrical grid, data center operators can use energy stored in their UPS batteries to supply energy to the grid and balance it when there isn’t enough renewable energy being generated, said Moises Levy, principal analyst with Omdia’s Cloud and Data Center research practice.

新型支持智能电网的UPS，也称为电网交互型UPS，用作双向电源转换器，也为数据中心运营方提供内部效益。此类UPS 由称为电池储能系统的锂电池构成，可以提供数小时的运行保障。

These new smart-grid-ready UPSes, also called grid-interactive UPSes, work as bidirectional power converters and can provide internal benefits to data center operators, too. The UPSes – built with lithium-ion-based batteries called battery energy storage systems – can provide hours of runtime.

这样，数据中心运营方可以将存储起来的电池电量用于“调峰”，在能源成本最高的峰段能源使用期为数据中心供电，在需求少和能源价格较低时为电池充电达到省钱的效果，Levy补充说道。数据中心可在电力中断时，放弃柴油发电机而改用 UPS 电池为其数据中心临时供电，这是一种更加“绿色”的解决方案

As a result, data center operators can use the stored battery power for “peak shaving,” powering the data center during periods of peak energy use when energy costs are highest and then recharging the batteries when there is lower demand and lower energy prices, which saves money, Levy said. Data centers can also replace diesel generators and use the UPS batteries to temporarily power their data centers during outages, which is a much more “green” solution.

“如今，智能电网就绪型UPS 和储能系统项目结合自动化技术后，可使设备能够感知电网并与电网交互，帮助数据中心在能源消耗的数量和时段方面变得更加智能，并有助于打造追求实践更具可持续的数据中心，”Levy 在接受Data Center Knowledge采访时说。“这将有助于消除可再生资源的不可预测性，平衡能源供需。”

“Nowadays, smart-grid-ready UPS and energy storage system projects incorporate automation technologies that enable equipment to sense and interact with the electric grid, helping data centers to become smarter about the amount and timing of energy consumption and helping in the pursuit of a more sustainable data center,” Levy said in an interview with Data Center Knowledge. “It can also contribute to smooth out the unpredictability in renewable resources, balancing energy supply and demand.”

新兴的智能电网就绪型 UPS 市场

Emerging Smart-Grid-Ready UPS Market

智能电网就绪型UPS 市场仍处于起步阶段。Levy补充说，近年来，伊顿、施耐德电气、Riello 和 Vertiv 等供应商都推出了新型 UPS。

The market for smart-grid-ready UPSes is still nascent. Vendors such as Eaton, Schneider Electric, Riello and Vertiv have all introduced the new breed of UPSes in recent years, Levy said.

例如，伊顿高管称，他们在两年前推出了第一款名为 EnergyAware的UPS，Vertiv 今年 4 月份为其 Vertiv Liebert EXL S1 UPS 及 Vertiv HPL 锂电池柜，推出了新的动态电网支持功能。

For example, Eaton executives say they introduced their first EnergyAware UPSes two years ago, while Vertiv in April introduced its new Dynamic Grid Support feature for its Vertiv Liebert EXL S1 UPS and its Vertiv HPL lithium-ion battery cabinet.

Levy称，虽然数据中心运营方现在可以使用新型 UPS 来防止宕机并更好地管理能耗，但利用新的数据中心技术来稳定电网并为电网做补充的实践仍处于起步期。

While data center operators can use the new UPSes today to prevent downtime and better manage energy usage, the effort to use the new data center technology to stabilize and contribute to electrical grids is still in its infancy, Levy said.

目标有两个：在电网存在需要时提供能量，同时帮助保持电力系统的频率稳定。UPS 可以进行“快频响应”，它提供或接受小部分能量激增以平衡电网。

The goals there are two-fold: supply energy when the grid needs it, but also to help keep the electrical frequency of power systems stable. The UPSes can do “fast frequency response,” which provides or accepts small bursts of energy to balance the grid.

“如果遇到一些干扰，数据中心 UPS 将成为支撑并确保电网具有稳定性和弹性的快速反应资产，”伊顿关键电力系统技术经理 Janne Paananen 说，该公司已与微软一起率先部署了该技术.

“If you have some disturbances, the data center UPS becomes a fast-reacting asset to support the grid and ensure you have stability and resiliency,” said Janne Paananen, technology manager of Eaton’s critical power systems, whose company has piloted the technology with Microsoft.

向电网侧供能还可以为数据中心运营方带来新收入。伊顿和微软上周发布了一份详细介绍新型 UPS 优势的白皮书，该白皮书称欧洲数据中心运营方每年每兆瓦可能产生数万欧元至超过 100,000 欧元或 118,000 美元的收入。

Contributing energy to the grid can also generate new revenue for data center operators. In fact, Eaton and Microsoft, which last week released a white paper detailing the benefits of the new UPSes, said European data center operators can potentially generate between tens of thousands of euros to more than 100,000 euros, or $118,000 USD, per megawatt per year, the whitepaper said.

然而，要使愿景成为现实并让数据中心为电网做出贡献，政府必须为电网制定新的法规和标准，而电网运营公司必须开发“智能”电网，以便其可以与类似UPS 及电池等分布式能源进行交互，Levy 补充说道。

However, to make the vision a reality and enable data centers to contribute to the grid, governments must create new regulations and standards for power grids, while grid operators must develop “smart” electrical grids, so they can interact with distributed energy resources such as UPSes and their batteries, Levy said.

他说，为了实现这一目标，电网运营公司必须部署新的自动化、高级控制、传感器和数据分析工具。

To do so, grid operators must deploy new automation, advanced controls, sensors and data analytics, he said.

UPS 厂商通过推出由锂电池供电的 UPS，在进程中贡献了自己的一份力量。Levy 表示，要使智能电网就绪型 UPS 被广泛采用，数据中心需要可靠、更具成本效益、环保且易于部署的储能系统，而锂电池可以实现这一点。

The UPS vendors have done their part in the equation by releasing lithium-ion battery-powered UPSes. For smart-grid-ready UPSes to become widely adopted, data centers need reliable, cost-effective, environmentally friendly and easy-to-deploy energy storage systems – and lithium-ion batteries enable that, Levy said.

Levy 说，由锂电池构成的储能系统容量可以从几兆瓦扩展到 20 兆瓦。电动汽车和消费电子行业的创新和需求推动锂电池价格下降，数据中心运营方可接受和使用。

Energy storage systems powered by lithium-ion batteries can scale from several megawatts to 20 megawatts, Levy said. Innovation and demand by the electric vehicle and consumer electronics industries have driven lithium-ion battery prices down, making it accessible to data center operators, he said.

“从技术上讲，不同 UPS厂商提供的智能电网就绪型产品很相似，当然存在许多不同之处，它们使用不同方法，包括不同的传感设备、控制系统和与电网互动实现的软件算法，”Levy说。

“Technologically speaking, the [smart-grid-ready] products offered by the different [UPS] manufacturers are similar, but of course, there are many differentiators since they use different approaches, including sensing devices, control systems and software algorithms to enable this technology to interact with the electric grid,” Levy said.

超大规模数据中心运营方引领潮流

Hyperscalers Lead the Way

Levy 表示，超大规模数据中心运营方和云服务厂商率先垂范，它们部署智能电网就绪型UPS和储能方案，并在试点项目中连接电网和启动实施。

Hyperscalers and cloud service providers are among those leading the charge in deploying smart-grid-ready UPSes and energy storage solutions and connecting them to power grids in pilot projects and initial implementations, Levy said.

该技术帮助谷歌和微软等云服务巨头，力争到 2030 年使用 100%无碳能源为全球各地设施供电。

The technology helps cloud giants like Google and Microsoft in their quest to power their facilities around the world with 100% carbon-free energy by 2030.

事实上，微软和伊顿的高管上周宣布，他们已经成功合，在多个试点项目中使用伊顿电网交互型UPS。

In fact, Microsoft and Eaton executives last week announced they have successfully collaborated on several pilots using Eaton’s grid-interactive UPSes.

微软数据中心高级开发组高级工程师 Ehsan Nasr表示，微软2017年首次在其位于弗吉尼亚州Boydton的微软创新中心试用了伊顿的技术，最近一次是在 2020 年在芝加哥微软数据中心试用。

Ehsan Nasr, senior engineer for Microsoft’s data center advanced development group, said Microsoft first piloted Eaton’s technology at its Microsoft Innovation Center in Boydton, Virginia, in 2017 and most recently at a Microsoft data center in Chicago in 2020.

Ehsan Nasr说，微软为试点制定了三个目标：尽量利用其数据中心的现有资产，帮助电网运营公司稳定电网并实现可持续发展目标。

Microsoft had three goals for the pilots: to better use existing assets from its data centers, to help grid operators stabilize their electrical grids and to achieve sustainability goals, he said.

“我们的目标是成为一个更好的电网用户。为实现使用更多的可再生能源，我们需要……确保系统稳定，” Nasr告诉DCK。“这是三赢：来自数据中心运营方、电网以及可持续供能方。”

“We are aiming to be a better grid citizen. In order to enable more renewable energy, we need to … make sure the system is going to be stable,” Nasr told Data Center Knowledge. “It’s three wins: from the data center operator [side], from the grid side and also from the sustainability aspect.”

Nasr说，在试用期间，微软在其数据中心使用了伊顿锂电池供电的 UPS来测试调峰以优化能源支出，并测试快频响应以帮助稳定电网。

During the pilots, Microsoft used Eaton’s lithium-ion battery-powered UPS in its data centers to test peak shaving to optimize the energy bill and to test fast-frequency response to help stabilize the grid, Nasr said.

伊顿称，其开发的软件算法和控制用来实现与电网的无缝和自动交互。作为试点项目的部分内容，微软和伊顿还与当地电网运营公司展开密切合作。

Eaton has developed software algorithms and controls to enable seamless and automatic interaction with the grid, Eaton said. As part of the pilots, Microsoft and Eaton also worked closely with the local grid operators.

Nasr说：“我们从电网运营公司收到一个信号，储能装置回应可提供多少电能用来帮助稳定频率。”

“We were getting a signal from them, and they were responding back with a signal of how much power we can offer to help with frequency stabilization,” Nasr said.

微软表示后备电源充足，为电网出力并不会影响数据中心客户。“当向电网回注电力时，对客户没有影响，”Nasr说。“UPS中始终保留足够的容量来满足业务连续性需求。”

Microsoft said there is always plenty of backup power, so contributing to the grid does not affect data center customers. “When it pushes power back to the grid, there is no impact to the customers,” he said. “There is always enough energy reserved in the UPS to meet business continuity needs.”

Nasr表示，总体而言，微软对试点结果非常满意，该公司计划在未来至少在一些 Azure 公有云数据中心使用该技术并付诸实施。每个地区都不同，因此微软将加以分析，看看哪些微软数据中心是电网交互型UPS 的合理候选方。

Overall, Microsoft was so happy with the results of the pilots that the company plans to go live with the technology and implement it in at least some Azure data centers in the future, Nasr said. Because every region is different, Microsoft will run analyses to see which Microsoft data centers are good candidates for grid-interactive UPSes, he said.

Nasr 说：“我们确实看到了这项技术的重大机遇。我们的目标是在自有数据中心内更广泛地实施该技术”。

“We do see significant opportunities for that technology. We are aiming to implement that technology inside of our data centers more broadly,” Nasr said.

Paananen 告诉 DCK，他希望微软/伊顿的成功试点能够说服数据中心运营方,在未来考虑使用电网交互型UPS。

Paananen told Data Center Knowledge that he hopes the successful Microsoft/Eaton pilots will convince data center operators to consider using grid-interactive UPSes in the future.

“这是经过验证的技术。Paananen说，其公司已经在欧洲开展了其他几个试点项目，其中包括在爱尔兰都柏林的全球总部进行的概念验证项目。“您正在帮助电网消纳更多可再生能源。不仅为自己减少了碳排放，也为每个人减少了碳排放，这是一项丰功伟绩。”

“This is proven technology. It has been proven in the pilots, so it’s a matter of doing it,” said Paananen, whose company has run several other pilots in Europe, including a proof-of-concept project at its own global headquarters in Dublin, Ireland. “You are helping to get more renewable energy to the grid. You are reducing carbon emissions not only for yourself, but for everyone, and that’s a great contribution.”

DeepKnowledge

翻译：

Eric

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