Reactor Designs?

[Primalflower]

I love to use the reactor for power, I'd love to see what others have come up with for their own designs of reactor.

A hurdle I've faced with reactor design is that it seems as if it is necessary for the reactor to have a constant supply of coolant in pipes. However, the reactor is best in a steam room, which means that without space age materials, water will eventually burst in the pipes. My designs end up periodically flushing the coolant into a little tank where its refreshed back to 95c with the rest of the turbine water.

How have y'all solved that issue..?

[ghkbrew]

27 minutes ago, Primalflower said:

A hurdle I've faced with reactor design is that it seems as if it is necessary for the reactor to have a constant supply of coolant in pipes. However, the reactor is best in a steam room, which means that without space age materials, water will eventually burst in the pipes. My designs end up periodically flushing the coolant into a little tank where its refreshed back to 95c with the rest of the turbine water.

How have y'all solved that issue..?

How sure are you that that's an issue?  An always-on reactor should draw coolant fast enough that you can feed it 95C water with a simple igneous rock insulated pipe and the water will never sit in the pipe long enough to boil.

[Primalflower]

7 minutes ago, ghkbrew said:

How sure are you that that's an issue?  An always-on reactor should draw coolant fast enough that you can feed it 95C water with a simple igneous rock insulated pipe and the water will never sit in the pipe long enough to boil.

i never thought of just having it always on. Thats an interesting way to circumvent the issue. May i ask if you know how much fuel the reactor takes per cycle if it's constantly on?

[ghkbrew]

3 hours ago, Primalflower said:

May i ask if you know how much fuel the reactor takes per cycle if it's constantly on?

The reactor takes 10kg/cycle of fuel, IIRC.

[silverbluep]

The reactor takes 10kg/cycle but if you feed it uranium in 10kg chunks it produces less steam. It is usually better to automate the turbines and feed the reactor in chunks such that it does not overpressure.

[madcat1188]

On 10/12/2021 at 5:29 AM, silverbluep said:

The reactor takes 10kg/cycle but if you feed it uranium in 10kg chunks it produces less steam. It is usually better to automate the turbines and feed the reactor in chunks such that it does not overpressure.

I've got my reactor always on, since I'm using the water from the turbines to feed the reactor. If you do automate the turbines (presumably hooking them up to a smart battery) then do you get water for the reactor partially from an outside source, and if so, does that cause the pressure inside the reactor chamber to go up and up, and does it matter? I like using the 10 kg chunks too, but I find you definitely don't get as much power out of the steam turbines due to the lower pressure and temperature. Any advice on maximizing the power output of a 10 kg per cycle reactor?

My personal rules for reactor design are:

1. If the reactor wants water, it gets water. Always strive to make sure there is never a situation where the liquid input pipe into the reactor doesn't have water in it, unless you're trying for a kaboom. I like to use water recycled from the steam turbines for the reactor, but I like to also setup a liquid pipe element sensor that turns on a liquid shutoff with water from another source, just in case.

2. Always use steel or better for liquid pumps and aquatuners, etc. Always use insulated pipes and tiles. Use iron or better for wires and automation cables. Never use lead.

3. Make sure to use doors to prevent dupes from accessing parts of the interior of the reactor structure you don't want them in, and keep them out unless you want them inside of it. Also make sure they are wearing lead suits if they go inside. I also like to keep the enriched uranium in a different room, lock the door to that room, and use conveyor rails to get the uranium to the reactor. Dupes are known to do stupid things, and if they get their hands on enriched uranium, who knows.

4. Make sure to have a cooling loop or some system to cool down the steam turbines.

5. If you have the choice of running wiring, pipes, automation cables, etc through the interior of the structure vs the outside, always choose the outside. I like to have automation gates and similar on the outside of any structure that is sealed off, since it makes it much easier to change later.

6. Try to have the structure housing the reactor and generators surrounded by a vacuum on the outside. I like to use heavi-watt joint plates to power the pump and aquatuners, but if I wasn't surrounded by a vacuum that would dump way too much heat into my base.

7. Hook up thermo sensors to automated notifiers to alert you if the steam is too hot.

8. Make sure that water coming out of the steam turbines always has somewhere to go, and avoid blocked pipes.

I imagine this is all obvious to everybody here, but I thought I'd mention in case any new players come along.

And this is why I think rule #1 should be the golden rule:

[meekay]

@madcat1188: How do you keep the sweeper and conveyor output cool below 275°C within the containment room? Or does the steam output not get that hot?

[silverbluep]

10 hours ago, madcat1188 said:

I've got my reactor always on, since I'm using the water from the turbines to feed the reactor. If you do automate the turbines (presumably hooking them up to a smart battery) then do you get water for the reactor partially from an outside source, and if so, does that cause the pressure inside the reactor chamber to go up and up, and does it matter? I like using the 10 kg chunks too, but I find you definitely don't get as much power out of the steam turbines due to the lower pressure and temperature. Any advice on maximizing the power output of a 10 kg per cycle reactor?

My personal rules for reactor design are:

1. If the reactor wants water, it gets water. Always strive to make sure there is never a situation where the liquid input pipe into the reactor doesn't have water in it, unless you're trying for a kaboom. I like to use water recycled from the steam turbines for the reactor, but I like to also setup a liquid pipe element sensor that turns on a liquid shutoff with water from another source, just in case.

2. Always use steel or better for liquid pumps and aquatuners, etc. Always use insulated pipes and tiles. Use iron or better for wires and automation cables. Never use lead.

3. Make sure to use doors to prevent dupes from accessing parts of the interior of the reactor structure you don't want them in, and keep them out unless you want them inside of it. Also make sure they are wearing lead suits if they go inside. I also like to keep the enriched uranium in a different room, lock the door to that room, and use conveyor rails to get the uranium to the reactor. Dupes are known to do stupid things, and if they get their hands on enriched uranium, who knows.

4. Make sure to have a cooling loop or some system to cool down the steam turbines.

5. If you have the choice of running wiring, pipes, automation cables, etc through the interior of the structure vs the outside, always choose the outside. I like to have automation gates and similar on the outside of any structure that is sealed off, since it makes it much easier to change later.

6. Try to have the structure housing the reactor and generators surrounded by a vacuum on the outside. I like to use heavi-watt joint plates to power the pump and aquatuners, but if I wasn't surrounded by a vacuum that would dump way too much heat into my base.

7. Hook up thermo sensors to automated notifiers to alert you if the steam is too hot.

8. Make sure that water coming out of the steam turbines always has somewhere to go, and avoid blocked pipes.

I imagine this is all obvious to everybody here, but I thought I'd mention in case any new players come along.

And this is why I think rule #1 should be the golden rule:

My theory is (only from watching Francis John; i don' play the game right now) the rate of heat transferred to the water is dependent on the total amount of uranium in the reactor; even if the consumption rate of the uranium is constant. So if you have 100kg of uranium in there it heats the water 10 times faster than when you have 10kg uranium in the reactor storage. They get depleted the same rate though.

Which would mean the heat you get out would be quadratic with respect to how much at once you feed the reactor; if you are going for feeding the reactor in chunks until they deplete. (presumably so you can semi-automate the reactor with a shorter delay than 20 cycles; i think it takes 200kg at max?)

The best way to automate the reactor would be to automate the steam turbines instead (while having buffer water at hand enough for 20 days), keep the reactor supplied with 200kg at all times so you get max efficiency steam heating, and have a buffer steam tank that can store the overproduced steam for 20 cycles when you stop feeding the reactor. (And feed that back into the chamber when you need more energy.)

[hackcasual]

6 hours ago, meekay said:

@madcat1188: How do you keep the sweeper and conveyor output cool below 275°C within the containment room? Or does the steam output not get that hot?

Dedicate some of your water to drip on a block touching the sweeper and keep it as far away from the reactor as you can while still having it reach. Wall it off with insulated tiles as well (a 1 tile gap should allow it to still service the reactor). You'll end up with a much cooler steam pocket. 

For my designs, I follow the same principle of always supplying the reactor with water, though using a bypass loop so if the reactor can't take the water, it's returned to the input cistern. Reactor refuel is only enabled when the steam room is below 20k atmosphere. Steam turbine output is directed back into the room while its over 220C, then it gets shunted back into the input cistern. 

[madcat1188]

On 10/22/2021 at 7:33 AM, meekay said:

@madcat1188: How do you keep the sweeper and conveyor output cool below 275°C within the containment room? Or does the steam output not get that hot?

I've got my reactor laid out in a pyramid pattern, with the reactor at the top, and steam turbines on levels below it. The top chamber is actually the coldest part of the whole thing, which surprised me a bit. The autosweeper is made of steel, and doesn't go above 150 C. They conveyor receptacle is made of iron ore, doesn't have an overheat temperature, and melts at 1500 C, so it should be fine. The liquid pump at the bottom has sometimes been a problem, even though it is made out of steel, but I find the trick is keep adding water and increase the pressure until things stabilize, then just recycle water from the turbines. The more water you add, the higher the pressure gets in the steam chamber, but the lower the temperature. You'll add water if you take water from an outside source and feed it to the reactor, or you can setup a liquid vent somewhere in the steam chamber with water from the outside source and control it with a toggle switch.

 

On 10/22/2021 at 9:42 AM, silverbluep said:

My theory is (only from watching Francis John; i don' play the game right now) the rate of heat transferred to the water is dependent on the total amount of uranium in the reactor; even if the consumption rate of the uranium is constant.

This is true. If you just let the duplicants fill it up to the brim you get the most heat. I can just hit the reset button on the timer sensor and it will send in another 10 kg chunk. I've found through trial and error that around 40 kg in the reactor gives off enough heat to keep 8 steam turbines running at about 90%, so I've been priming my reactor with 40 kg then feeding it 10 kg / cycle.

Quote

The best way to automate the reactor would be to automate the steam turbines instead (while having buffer water at hand enough for 20 days), keep the reactor supplied with 200kg at all times so you get max efficiency steam heating, and have a buffer steam tank that can store the overproduced steam for 20 cycles when you stop feeding the reactor. (And feed that back into the chamber when you need more energy.)

I am automating the steam turbines, but using a thermo sensor. Actually two sensors and a memory toggle to keep it between 170 and 190 C . How would you go about setting up a buffer steam tank? Use doors pumps to pump it out of the main tank into the buffer and back?

One thing I learned the hard way is that reactors don't like having the tiles they're sitting on deconstructed. If you do, it will deactivate it and stop drawing water, but the uranium inside still gets hotter, so the reactor explodes within mere seconds.

[silverbluep]

I'm thinking door pumps because no temperature/pressure limits (and you only need to pump out enough to keep the reactor going overpressure) but I don't get too ambitious with designs so it would take a better ONIer than me to design such a door pump . And release it once the reactor runs out of uranium (20 cycles) at which point you don't care about reactor being overpressured; the steam acts as battery.

[Eduardo12]

Not anywhere fancy. Inspired on Francis John small reactor, but with flat out production and dessalinate my hot salt water geyser.

Conveyor meter: 10 units

Timer: 0.2s green each 200s

Air pressure sensor: <20000g

Temperature waste pool: >205 C and <800kg

Weight plate: >1kg

500 cycles, still running smooth.

[Unlikus]

On 10/22/2021 at 6:42 PM, silverbluep said:

My theory is (only from watching Francis John; i don' play the game right now) the rate of heat transferred to the water is dependent on the total amount of uranium in the reactor; even if the consumption rate of the uranium is constant. So if you have 100kg of uranium in there it heats the water 10 times faster than when you have 10kg uranium in the reactor storage. They get depleted the same rate though.

Which would mean the heat you get out would be quadratic with respect to how much at once you feed the reactor; if you are going for feeding the reactor in chunks until they deplete. (presumably so you can semi-automate the reactor with a shorter delay than 20 cycles; i think it takes 200kg at max?)

The best way to automate the reactor would be to automate the steam turbines instead (while having buffer water at hand enough for 20 days), keep the reactor supplied with 200kg at all times so you get max efficiency steam heating, and have a buffer steam tank that can store the overproduced steam for 20 cycles when you stop feeding the reactor. (And feed that back into the chamber when you need more energy.)

From looking at the code I can say that is mostly true, but it maxes out at 60kg. As long as you have 60kg Uranium in your reactor it will produce full heat output.

[gabberworld]

On 10/24/2021 at 11:26 AM, madcat1188 said:

something is not right about your design, you have there only 8 turbines and they not using full potential

maybe because off that pump what you have at there , its at bottom off reactor, basically that is hottest place for the waste what drops down. you pumping away hot material but you really should pump cold material

[gabberworld]

now this how looks my reactor, its currently at in sandbox,  i need todo some power-line polishing

guess how hot the steam is

[gabberworld]

not guessed? well currently its 245c and i needed start freaking close the vents, i feel it may go even higher because when you close vents it starts make less water output, also im trouble with cooling. i maybe need start use 3 aqua-tuners at there

the cooling trouble is self because i separated turbines to two levels. by default aqua-tuner should handle them but not like this setup

currently i made this if turbine heat goes too high at turbines then i start shut them off one by one. but there is again a thing, less water output that means that steam room goes even hotter

[gabberworld]

well my setup reach to the 280c , Steel is not a option anymore at there. stuff started break . needed replace them with niobium

280c means i need close 2 vents for turbines other way they go too hot too fast

as heat goes higher and higer

soo does it mean 10 steam turbines not en-oh for  reactor. maybe its the 12. probaply need build new setup

[gabberworld]

wait. i have a idea. because i have that nuclear waste already over 200c , i can use that nuclear waste use for build second steam room ..

hmm

[gabberworld]

soo there it is almost finished

currently looks stable at 338c, need go little higher tho

12 steam turbines

all 10 have 3 vets is closed in steam room

bottom steam room is for extra cooling for the other turbines and also for nuclear waste

i not know yet how stable it is, i need let him to run

the mainly why its soo hot is because there not water waste, almost all water goes right back to reactor self what comes from steam turbines

Sandbox.sav

[thegroundbelow]

That's a really nice design, even if it looks like a nightmare to build in survival. The only real issue I see is how often 4 of the turbines get deactivated because their coolant is too hot.  There are some really cool tricks shown in that save, though - I especially like how you force liquid nuclear waste to divert into those infinite storages.

[gabberworld]

15 hours ago, thegroundbelow said:

That's a really nice design, even if it looks like a nightmare to build in survival. The only real issue I see is how often 4 of the turbines get deactivated because their coolant is too hot.  There are some really cool tricks shown in that save, though - I especially like how you force liquid nuclear waste to divert into those infinite storages.

i to made some changes also about that cooling, if steam hit to 350c it start use now extra cooling from bottom by using radiant pipe

setup is build from scratch tho and started from low temperatures.

bigger issue is that you need space materials as metal is not en-oh for that temp

maybe there is other way somehow how that extra water waste can be useful, i not think ed that out yet how and were i should use that.

problem about 10 turbines is that it still does too much waste even if i closed the 3 vents , if turbines disabled, it also disable the waste and room temp can also rise

[mfd]

This compact design uses no niobium. The upper part of the steam room is over 350c, while AT is around 235c, batteries are 240c, and sweeper is 205c. It has been working fine for about 90 cycles in survival.

The coolant is super coolant and is the only space material used in it. I think it needs one more AT if you use pwater. Even in this case it is energy-positive and produces 1t/cycle of nuclear waste, the best radiation source in this game.

Spoiler

 

[thegroundbelow]

Boy, I hope Ma-Mi has eaten her seafood!

[gabberworld]

i been thinking little, i think i can use even more steam turbines, i  just need close all 4 vents, that also lowers the heat for steam turbines self. current 12 turbine setup is not possible make that as there fill be not en-oh water output to reactor 

[gabberworld]

i been run this sometime now and seems like 4800g liquid is en-oh for reactor , aka 12 steam turbines with all 4 valves locked .

 but as heat rise it need more, others is like for cooling then.

my setup is currently for 20 but maybe 14 is enoh