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Austin Vernon

What Austin Vernon thinks about design

@austin-vernon · 42 positions · On ppll ↗

Engineer and investor who writes quantitative posts about how physical industries actually work — chemical plants, geothermal drilling, shipyards, thermal storage and the economics of low-volume manufacturing — at austinvernon.site.

Austin Vernon did not write this page.

We collected these quotes from things they published elsewhere, and every quote links to where it was said. They have no account here and have not endorsed this site. Quotes are word for word; the short line under each one is our own restatement, not their wording. Their own site. Is this you? Claim it or ask us to remove it. Or tell us what is wrong here.

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Only Austin Vernon on design. See everyone on design

4 dated positions, 2024, in their own words. Our reading of what Austin Vernon has said — not written or endorsed by them.

4 positions so far — this page is not yet offered to search engines.

  1. Our readingA data centre powered by solar and batteries alone needs an array so oversized that the design is not worth building.

    solardata centersbatteries

    Their wordsThe solar array sizes under these assumptions are prohibitively large.

    ↗How to Make Off Grid Data Centers Affordableaustinvernon.site 1st of 9 in this piece

  3. Our readingCooling adds nothing to what a data centre produces, which is why it is the first thing a good design deletes rather than optimises.

    data centersenergy

    Their wordsThe cooling systems in most data centers are energy hogs and contribute no direct value.

    ↗How to Make Off Grid Data Centers Affordableaustinvernon.site 3rd of 9 in this piece

  5. Our readingA data centre should be split into independent power blocks fed directly at 1500 volts DC, rather than run through one central distribution system.

    data centers

    Their wordsThe 100-megawatt facility might have ten 10-megawatt blocks served directly by a 1500V DC feeder line without connections to other blocks that would require extra switches and routing.

    ↗How to Make Off Grid Data Centers Affordableaustinvernon.site 6th of 9 in this piece

  7. Our readingOff-grid data centres will win the way electric cars did, by redesigning the machine around the new power source instead of swapping the power source in.

    data centerselectric vehicles

    Their wordsEfforts to improve efficiency and remove vestigial features pay off handsomely.

    ↗How to Make Off Grid Data Centers Affordableaustinvernon.site 8th of 9 in this piece