How to generate electricity for Aquilo space platforms?

[Falesz]

Hey all,
I finally got around to designing a space platform to take me to Aquilo and eventually refined the design enough so I could get there.. but then the space platform just gets completely stranded because my Rare quality solar panels aren't generating enough electricity in orbit of Aquilo.

I considered using steam power to make use of all the ice in space, but neither boilers nor heating towers can be built in space.

I want to avoid Nuclear power because of the wasting of fuel. There was a thread about that somewhere here a few weeks ago. Wasting Uranium fuel cells isn't something I would ever care about on Nauvis, but in space where my space platforms can potentially spend LONG amounts of time waiting on the "All requests satisfied" conditions that could be a problem. So long story short: nuclear power is not renewable and therefore I would like to avoid it unless I absolutely have no other viable options.

Fusion power is.. not unlocked yet.

So what am I supposed to do here? Is there some other way to make Steam in space other than boilers? Or am I just supposed to spam as many high quality Solar panels as my factory can churn out until electricity demands are met? I suspect even that isn't a permanent solution because of the whole Shattered planet thingy in my far future, where as far as I can tell solar power becomes completely useless.

[Hurkyl]

Solar Panels only 60% efficiency in Aquilo orbit, as compared to 300% in Nauvis orbit, so that's why your power supply has gone down. And it's 1% efficiency at the solar system edge and beyond, so yes, they become effectively useless.

I haven't tried it, but I think the power recipe you get from Vulcanis works in space -- the one that turns sulfuric acid into steam.

[RiO]

You should be able to get up to epic quality solar panels at least, given Fulgora -- [edit]: sorry, it's now Gleba -- unlocks that. Other than that- nope; it's going to have to be nuclear fission first, and then an ASAP-retrofit to fusion once the tech is unlocked.

This is intentional. It's supposed to be something of a hard barrier that also will prevent you from spending ages out at the fringes of the solar system to grab prometheum for the end game.

Originally posted by Hurkyl:

I haven't tried it, but I think the power recipe you get from Vulcanis works in space -- the one that turns sulfuric acid into steam.

Afaik it doesn't; and is unique to Volcanus.

[Chindraba]

Originally posted by Csöpper:

So long story short: nuclear power is not renewable and therefore I would like to avoid it unless I absolutely have no other viable options.

As I understand the situation, and the game's workings, you have no other viable options at this point.

You can, however, use any number of methods to avoid wasting the fuel cells. There have been many variations discussed, even before the extra capabilities of 2.0 were introduced. They settle out into two camps basically. Use the full power from the fuel cells and store the excess as steam. Monitor the steam level and add more fuel when it gets low. Or, monitor the reactor's temperature and only add fuel when that gets low.

Personally, as you note for Nauvis, I've never worried about the regulation of fuel cell usage, so I don't have the systems for it in my head. Still, until you unlock fusion power, you really do have no other viable options.

[Hurkyl]

Originally posted by RiO:

Originally posted by Hurkyl:

I haven't tried it, but I think the power recipe you get from Vulcanis works in space -- the one that turns sulfuric acid into steam.

Afaik it doesn't; and is unique to Volcanus.

I was just going to check and can confirm, it is unique to Vulcanus. So no sulfur power. :(

[Hurkyl]

Originally posted by Csöpper:

in space where my space platforms can potentially spend LONG amounts of time waiting on the "All requests satisfied" conditions that could be a problem.

FWIW, platform schedules also have the "interrupt" feature, which you should be able to use to give instructions to refuel, just like you would trains.

[Hurkyl]

Originally posted by Csöpper:

Fusion power is.. not unlocked yet.

Originally posted by Chindraba:

Personally, as you note for Nauvis, I've never worried about the regulation of fuel cell usage, so I don't have the systems for it in my head. Still, until you unlock fusion power, you really do have no other viable options.

For reference, Fusion power also requires fuel cells, and can only be produced on Aquilo*, using the rare resource from Fulgora.

*: This isn't a recipe limitation, but apparently you can't barrel Ammonia, so I don't think there's any way to get the ingredient elsewhere.

[Chindraba]

Originally posted by Hurkyl:

Originally posted by Csöpper:

Fusion power is.. not unlocked yet.

Originally posted by Chindraba:

Personally, as you note for Nauvis, I've never worried about the regulation of fuel cell usage, so I don't have the systems for it in my head. Still, until you unlock fusion power, you really do have no other viable options.

For reference, Fusion power also requires fuel cells, and requires Fulgora and Aquilo-specific resources.

Then, it seems, learning how to regulate the use of fuel will not be a waste of time. The concept will live on with the fusion reactor, even if the circuits change.

[Superguru]

Make use of advanced asteroid extraction to get the materials to make platform parts in orbit. Cruise around to gather a lot of material. Best use foundries to store plenty of iron and copper in tanks.
With that extend your platform to fit like 100 solar panels. Then you have 3.6 MW+ in aquilo orbit. With efficiency modules in crafting machines you can keep up orbital production of ammo and what you need on planet.

[Hurkyl]

Originally posted by Chindraba:

Originally posted by Hurkyl:

For reference, Fusion power also requires fuel cells, and requires Fulgora and Aquilo-specific resources.

Then, it seems, learning how to regulate the use of fuel will not be a waste of time. The concept will live on with the fusion reactor, even if the circuits change.

I guess I should add, the fusion power plant will only consume fuel as needed, like a stone furnace. So you don't have the problem* that fission power and heating towers have where they just keep burning fuel even at max temperature.

I'm not sure how the power prioritization works between fusion power and the other power generation methods.

*: Well, rather than a problem, it's sometimes the intended effect from the heating tower....

[POWER WITHIN USER]

Originally posted by Csöpper:

I want to avoid Nuclear power because of the wasting of fuel.

Even if you "waste" fuel, it literally doesn't matter because 1 U235 becomes 10 cells that give you 8GJ each and uranium ore is very easy to get.

Whatever we post isn't the same as you actually trying to use nuclear.

[brown29knight]

For my first visits to Aquilo, I went with heavy rare/epic solar (over 50 panels in a small ship) and a TON of rare/epic accumulators. The accumulators let me store enough power to make fuel and ammo for the trip back, send rockets up and down, and otherwise be safe until I could get fusion.

Fusion does not use constant power, so you can run it on a ship without fear of wasting fuel.

So no, nuclear is not needed, if you make sure you have enough power storage.

[Hurkyl]

Originally posted by POWER WITHIN USER:

Originally posted by Csöpper:

I want to avoid Nuclear power because of the wasting of fuel.

Even if you "waste" fuel, it literally doesn't matter because 1 U235 becomes 10 cells that give you 8GJ each and uranium ore is very easy to get.

Whatever we post isn't the same as you actually trying to use nuclear.

Continue reading the OP:

Originally posted by OP:

Wasting Uranium fuel cells isn't something I would ever care about on Nauvis, but in space where my space platforms can potentially spend LONG amounts of time waiting on the "All requests satisfied" conditions that could be a problem.

Each rocket shipment of uranium fuel cells only sends 10, so only 2000 seconds of fuel for the nuclear reactor -- a little more than a half hour. A full stack is less than three hours.

(sending up the Uranium itself, both the 235 and 258 needed, might be a better option)

[Glyph]

Nuclear in space is incredibly fuel efficient, especially if you restrict inserting new fuel to only when you need it with circuitry.

[Nico]

The answer is simply using nuclear energy, but without the part where you're actually wasting any of it. Just only feed fuel once you are low on Steam and your fuel should last you for ages.

[Quillithe]

Originally posted by Csöpper:

I want to avoid Nuclear power because of the wasting of fuel. There was a thread about that somewhere here a few weeks ago. Wasting Uranium fuel cells isn't something I would ever care about on Nauvis, but in space where my space platforms can potentially spend LONG amounts of time waiting on the "All requests satisfied" conditions that could be a problem.

An easy solution is just to set OR time limit conditions for every stop. If a ship doesn't get what it needs in 5 minutes I'd probably rather just head back with what it has anyway.

It also avoids getting stuck completely if you accidently add an impossible request