Success Stories

How a Major U.S. Data Center Reduced Water Use and Improved Efficiency Without Chemicals

Topics

Efficiency & Cost Savings, Water Treatment, Sustainable Programs

Industry

Data Centers

Project Details

Introduction

Data centers depend on continuous cooling performance, yet the systems that keep them online also consume vast amounts of water and treatment chemicals.

At a major U.S. data center operating two identical 1,250-ton cooling tower systems, facility engineers aimed to reduce that footprint without affecting performance. Their objective: verify whether a plant-based alternative could match or exceed the protection of conventional chemical treatment.

Working with CRB Water, the team launched a 14-month evaluation using ProMoss™, a natural moss-derived technology designed to prevent scale, corrosion, and microbial growth. The test would reveal whether sustainability and reliability could coexist within a single cooling program.

High-level details

Location

United States

Industry

Data Centers

Services

Results

~4.5 million gallons of water saved annually

Challenge

The existing chemical treatment program operated within acceptable limits, but it created new challenges:

Operational burden: demanded constant oversight, with frequent testing, chemical dosing, and manual feed calibration.
Safety risk: required handling and storage of hazardous drums and tanks of sodium hypochlorite and glutaraldehyde biocides.
Water waste: blowdown needed to meet chemical program performance parameters wasted significant volumes of treated water.

Corporate ESG goals added pressure for measurable reductions in both chemical use and water waste, while protecting uptime and safety.

A conventional approach could no longer meet both objectives.

Solution

CRB Water implemented a 14-month pilot comparing two identical cooling tower systems:

System A: Continued the facility’s existing chemical treatment program.
System B: Transitioned to ProMoss™, a plant-based treatment derived from sphagnum moss that naturally inhibits scale, corrosion, and microbiological growth.

ProMoss™ was introduced using simple feed cages placed in the cooling tower sump, eliminating the need for new tanks or dosing equipment for the trial.

Throughout the trial, CRB Water’s field engineers performed bi-weekly data collection and analysis, including:

Corrosion rates for mild steel and copper coupons
ATP readings and bacteria counts to monitor biological activity
Chiller approach temperatures to measure heat-transfer efficiency.

CRB Water provided detailed reporting, data interpretation, and field reviews throughout the trial, keeping the facility’s leadership fully informed on the performance.

Results

Here are the results of the pilot after 14 months.

Pilot Results

Metric	Chemically Treated	ProMoss™ Treated	Outcome
Mild Steel Corrosion	0.2 mils/year (Excellent)	1.0 mils/year (Excellent)	Equal protection
Copper Corrosion	0.3 mils/year (Good)	0.1 mils/year (Excellent)	Improved protection
Bacteria Counts	Up to 10⁴ CFU/ml	Avg. 5.0 × 10² CFU/ml	Stable microbial control
ATP Levels	295 RLU	197 RLU	Cleaner system
Chiller Approach Temp.	Steady	Trending down	Improved efficiency

Interpretation:

The ProMoss™ system met or exceeded all performance standards. It maintained excellent corrosion control, reduced biological activity, and improved condenser efficiency—clear evidence of cleaner heat-transfer surfaces and reduced biofilm buildup.

Water Savings

Parameter	Chemical Program	ProMoss™ Program	Difference
Blowdown, gallons/year	983K gallons	536K gallons	↓ 45.5%
Make-up Water Used	6.88 million gallons	6.40 million gallons	↓ 6.99%
Estimated Annual Savings	—	~450K gallons per year	—

Outcome:

Implementing ProMoss™ on the center’s 10 units would save roughly 4.5 million gallons of water annually without compromising performance. The chiller efficiency improvements due to cleaner heat transfer surfaces would reduce energy costs.

Sustainability & Operational Impact

No hazardous chemicals stored or handled on-site.
Simplified maintenance: no feed pumps, calibration, or chemical deliveries.
Safer working environment for plant personnel.
Zero-waste potential: spent moss reused as landscaping mulch for zero waste.
Blowdown water could be repurposed for site irrigation.

This program demonstrated that sustainable water treatment can maintain operational reliability while contributing directly to corporate ESG targets.

Conclusion

The 14-month evaluation proved that sustainable water treatment can fully replace conventional chemical treatment in high-demand cooling systems.

By replacing its conventional chemical treatment program with ProMoss™, the data center achieved equal corrosion control, improved system cleanliness, and reduced water use, all while eliminating hazardous chemicals from the site.

CRB Water continues to support the facility with data tracking and ongoing performance optimization as part of a long-term sustainability roadmap.

What began as a trial has evolved into a new operational standard—evidence that smarter water treatment protects both uptime and the planet.

Talk to an expert at CRB Water to explore non-chemical treatment options for your facility.

How a Major U.S. Data Center Reduced Water Use and Improved Efficiency Without Chemicals

Introduction

High-level details

Challenge

Solution

Results

Pilot Results

Water Savings

Sustainability & Operational Impact

Conclusion

Talk to a CRB Water expert today