Bilibili's Green Data Center Initiatives and the Custom R2‑AZ2 Project Overview

Author

SYS Team – Bilibili System Department (SYS) provides infrastructure support for all Bilibili services, including data centers, networking, computing, system software, and hybrid‑cloud management.

01 Background

With the rapid growth of the digital economy, data centers—the physical backbone of information systems—are expanding in number and scale, leading to a continuous rise in overall energy consumption. Government ministries have issued strict sustainability and energy‑efficiency targets for data centers.

July 2021: The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology released the "Three‑Year Action Plan for New‑type Data Centers (2021‑2023)" aiming to reduce PUE of newly built large‑scale data centers to below 1.3 by the end of 2023.

February 2022: The NDRC, CAC, MIIT, and National Energy Administration jointly issued a document completing the overall layout of a nationwide integrated big‑data center system, officially launching the "East‑Data West‑Compute" project.

July 2022: Shanghai’s Development and Reform Commission issued implementation opinions to promote data‑center construction, targeting a PUE of about 1.25 for new large‑scale centers and achieving a green‑low‑carbon rating of above 4A by the end of the 14th Five‑Year Plan.

To meet the ongoing energy‑saving demands, Bilibili has been exploring flexible and effective ways to build and operate smart, energy‑efficient data centers. The first phase of the customized data‑center project (R2‑AZ2) was introduced in a previous article.

02 Green Data Center Technical Collaboration

2.1 2022 Intel China Data Center Partner Summit

On August 25, the "Chip‑Enabled Intelligence, Co‑creating a Better Future" 2022 Intel China Data Center Partner Summit was held in Hangzhou.

Bilibili, as a member of the Green Data Center Innovation Forum, contributed its experience with customized cold‑plate liquid‑cooling rooms to co‑author the whitepaper "Green Data Center Innovation Practice – Cold‑Plate Liquid‑Cooling System Design Reference" (download link provided at the end of the article).

The whitepaper shares design considerations for key components of cold‑plate liquid‑cooling systems, showcases research progress, promotes standardization, and aims to reduce design and usage costs.

2.2 Green Data Center Standards and Whitepapers

To facilitate industry‑wide exchange on green data‑center technologies, Bilibili publishes best practices on liquid‑cooling systems and efficient prefabricated solutions, and actively participates in drafting standards and whitepapers, such as the China Electronics Standardization Association’s "Technical Specification for Liquid‑Cooled Cold‑Plate Technology for Electronic Information Equipment" and CDCC’s "Whitepaper on Efficient Prefabricated Integrated Cooling Systems for Data Centers".

03 Bilibili Customized Data Center (R2‑AZ2) – Innovation Room Phase‑1

The Innovation Room Phase‑1 project includes an indirect evaporative cooling zone and a wind‑liquid hybrid cooling zone. The hybrid zone uses a magnetic‑levitation fluorine pump for the air system, while the liquid‑cooling system supports cold‑plate‑based servers. Expected PUE under full load is 1.23 for the evaporative zone and 1.13 for the hybrid zone.

The project, aligned with Bilibili’s business growth and next‑generation server power demands, pilots new technologies to compare energy‑saving effects and operational stability, providing direct design, construction, and operation references for future projects.

Phase‑1 is scheduled to deliver the first batch of cold‑plate liquid‑cooled cabinets and air‑cooled server cabinets by the end of September 2022 and is currently in construction finalization and testing.

After cabinet delivery, Bilibili will explore operation‑maintenance systems for liquid‑cooling infrastructure, develop AI‑driven O&M tools, optimize key parameters of wind‑liquid interaction, and conduct POC and gray‑scale testing of cold‑plate liquid‑cooled servers, laying the groundwork for large‑scale adoption of high‑efficiency liquid‑cooling technology.

04 Conclusion

Bilibili remains committed to advancing green, intelligent data‑center technologies, continuously investing in advanced energy‑saving and water‑saving solutions, improving IT facility efficiency, accelerating low‑carbon core‑facility reconstruction, and promoting secure, green operation of critical infrastructure. The sustainable development of the data‑center industry requires joint efforts across the supply chain; Bilibili will maintain an open‑innovation stance and collaborate with industry partners to drive new technologies and solutions forward.

References

[1] Next‑Generation Smart Energy‑Efficient Data Center – Bilibili Customized Project Practice

[2] "Technical Specification for Liquid‑Cooled Cold‑Plate Technology for Electronic Information Equipment" (group standard draft) – https://www.cesa.cn/detail?paId=256&nbId=645

[3] CDCC Whitepaper on Efficient Prefabricated Integrated Cooling Systems for Data Centers

[4] "Green Data Center Innovation Practice – Cold‑Plate Liquid‑Cooling System Design Reference" – Whitepaper download: Whitepaper Download.pdf