Steam turbine

The steam turbine is a late-game power-generating building that converts high-temperature steam into electricity. It is designed to be paired with heat exchangers, which turn water into 500°C steam at a 1:10 ratio, making steam turbines the standard way to extract power from nuclear heat. A single steam turbine accepts up to 60 units of 500°C steam per second and produces 5.82 MW of electricity; the 5.8 MW shown in the tooltip is rounded.

Its power output comes directly from the amount of heat stored in the steam. Steam carries 0.2 kJ of heat energy per degree per unit, so 500°C steam contains far more usable energy than boiler-made steam. At full consumption, the turbine converts the temperature drop from 500°C to 15°C into electricity, which works out to 5820 kJ/s, or 5.82 MW. By comparison, boiler-generated steam at 165°C yields only 1.8 MW per turbine, so low-temperature steam is much less efficient for power generation.

Steam turbines are most useful when run at a steady temperature and fed by a balanced nuclear setup. Because they consume steam at a fixed maximum rate, the rest of the system should be sized to provide enough 500°C steam for the number of turbines in use. If steam production is lower than turbine demand, output falls immediately; if production is higher, excess steam will accumulate until it is needed.

• One steam turbine can consume up to 60 units/s of 500°C steam.
• At full load, one turbine produces 5.82 MW.
• The tooltip value of 5.8 MW is rounded down for display.
• Heat exchangers are the intended source of turbine steam, since they create 500°C steam from water efficiently.
• Boiler steam can also power turbines, but at only 1.8 MW per turbine because of its lower temperature.

In practice, steam turbines form the final stage of a heat-based power network: reactors generate heat, heat exchangers convert that heat into steam, and turbines turn the steam into electricity.