Ceramic membranes treat water for AI gigafactory

A supercomputing data centre in Memphis, USA, will use treated municipal wastewater to cool its servers. The centre is being built by Elon Musk to house his xAI project, and will be supplied with water by what the projects claims to be the world's largest ceramic membrane bioreactor (MBR).

CERAFILTEC membranes will treat the water

CERAFILTEC, headquartered in Germany, is a global leader in ceramic ultrafiltration membrane technology. It will deliver its most advanced ceramic membrane technology for use in the project, which is being fast-tracked by xAI. The fact the project needs the world's largest MBR reveals both the demand for water in AI data centres and that there is a growing demand for ceramic membrane solutions for wastewater treatment that supplies such ventures.

The company was chosen to supply ceramic membranes to the plant attached to the xAI data centre for a number of reasons: technological competence, advanced ceramic membrane solution, and ability to meet an accelerated delivery schedule.

Mark Carroll, xAI wastewater engineer, is leading the design and construction of the recycling plant, he told media: "CERAFILTEC's robust ceramic membrane technology meets our demanding requirements for ultra-reliable and efficient water treatment to support our state-of-the-art supercomputer."

He added: "This partnership enables us to set new benchmarks in both technology and water efficiency, ensuring vital cooling water supply for our high-performance computing systems with no impact on local potable water supplies."

CERAFILTEC's ceramic membranes overcome a number of issues associated with more traditional membrane solutions, such as fibre breakages and delicate cleaning regimens.

A company statement, read: "In a rapidly expanding data centre industry, effective, sustainable water management is essential to maintain high operational performance. CERAFILTEC's solution is designed to meet these stringent requirements."

Supercooling supersized AI data centres

Elon Musk has stated that the xAI date centre will provide "the most powerful AI training cluster in the world." The company, which is headquartered in San Francisco, USA, has the stated goal of 'pioneering the implementation of artificial intelligence to expedite human scientific discovery'.

Dr Torsten Wintergerste, who recently joined CERAFILTEC as CEO, from the Swiss technology company Sulzer, where he served as president of the Chemtech division, told media of the partnership: "Our DNAs are very aligned, and together we are shaping the future of both AI and water treatment."

The MBR will treat municipal wastewater and provide 49.2 MLD (13 MGD) of reused water to cool its servers and supercomputers in the Memphis facility.

Additional water benefits

The MBR facility will also have additional benefits for the wider area with its capacity designed to provide more water than needed by xAI. The surplus water will be supplied to local industries with clean water needs which will not only conserve drinking water in the region and benefit local communities, but it will also reduce pressure on the Memphis Sands Aquifer.

The aquifer spans portions of eight states, ranges over 7,000 square kilometres and to depths of 3,000 metres. Much of the water in the aquifer fell as rain more than 2,000 years ago. However, overextraction and pollution both offer threats to this vast resource of freshwater.

Dr Juergen Hambrecht, chairman of CERAFILTEC, told media: "Our collaboration with xAI showcases the transformative potential of ceramic membranes in water and wastewater treatment, offering unparalleled reliability and efficiency. This project establishes a new industry benchmark and reinforces CERAFILTEC's role as a global leader in innovative water solutions."