Automating nuclear reactors

[Servillo]

So I've got a basic nuclear reactor setup going, and I eventually intend to expand it. At its best, I'll be producing about 360 EU/tick, and I'll never have to touch the reactor while it's running.

Here's the thing; I'd like to automate it more so that I can use cooling cells, automatic crafting cells, etc. in order to produce even more power. The problem is, most IC2 tutorials assume only IC2, not Buildcraft or anything that lets me move items. So I have no clue how to run the thing without having to remove everything by hand to recharage cooling cells and the like.

I'd also like to know if I can use turtles from Computercraft to do this. At the very least, I plan on using turtles to automatically turn my reactors on and off when the storage units are full so as not to waste uranium, but if I can use turtles to somehow automate a reactor setup to produce more power, I'd like to do that. I'm much better with turtles than I am with Buildcraft.

 

[Whovian]

I think there's something in GregTech that lets you do this (GT Computercube?) but otherwise I don't think it's possible.

 

[netmc]

I think you can use factorization routers or the GT Translocator (advanced) to fill certain slots inside the nuclear reactor. If you make a MK I reactor, and only looking to replace the uranium as needed, I'm pretty sure you can use RP filter/retriever to pull out the depleted uranium cells, and transposers to fill the empty slots in the reactor. You would need to make sure all the slots in the reactor are filled though for this to work, as you don't want uranium going into random slots. Maybe use a detector cable to see when eu is no longer being produced, then pulse the filters a few times to pull out any depleted cells, then pulse the transposer on the uranium stock to refill the reactor.

I haven't automated any of the current IC2 reactors myself, but these methods should work as long as the reactor is treated as a standard inventory.

 

[Whovian]

I think you can use factorization routers or the GT Translocator (advanced) to fill certain slots inside the nuclear reactor. If you make a MK I reactor, and only looking to replace the uranium as needed, I'm pretty sure you can use RP filter/retriever to pull out the depleted uranium cells, and transposers to fill the empty slots in the reactor. You would need to make sure all the slots in the reactor are filled though for this to work, as you don't want uranium going into random slots. Maybe use a detector cable to see when eu is no longer being produced, then pulse the filters a few times to pull out any depleted cells, then pulse the transposer on the uranium stock to refill the reactor.

I haven't automated any of the current IC2 reactors myself, but these methods should work as long as the reactor is treated as a standard inventory.

The problem is, though, it's going to be hard to tell it exactly which slots to input to.

 

[netmc]

For filling specific slots, the only options are factorization routers and GT Advanced translocators.

For simply replacing the fuel in a reactor, you can use redpower. Once you use a filter/retriever to pull out spent nuclear fuel, the only slots that will be open in the reactor should be the fuel slots. (you have to fill all the unneeded slots with plating of some kind to fill the reactor entirely, so only the fuel spaces will get filled during a refueling cycle.)

I'm not sure how you would replace a coolant cell mid-cycle.

 

[Servillo]

Mmkay, this gives me some ideas. I'll have to play around with routers and redpower stuff a bit if I want to go down that route. We're playing the Direwolf pack on my server, so any Gregtech stuff is out. A little sad turtles can't carry the day here for me too. I might just try and design a good Mk II reactor since I'll be having to go back after each cycle anyway. It's a bit more resource intensive, but it's not like resource collection is all that hard.

 

[Peppe]

If you like your turtles... you might check misc peripherals:
http://www.computercraft.info/forums2/index.php?/topic/4587-cc15mc147-miscperipherals-31/

New peripheral - Inventory Upgrade - to let you move items to specific slots with the turtle or simulate placing an item in any side.

It should be in the main mod packs, so probably in whatever pack you are playing.

 

[hotblack desiato]

I never tested that, but I read that a nuclear reactor + railcraft loaders/unloaders make a pretty good automated breeder. those loaders/unloaders should be capable of running a standard reactor too. as long as there are no free spaces where uranium cells shouldn't go. with their filters, you can tell them that they should just pick the used cells out of the reactor... (or the reenriched cells, if it is a breeder)

 

[Shakie666]

Servillo, if you want to automate the reactor with cooling cells I highly recommend checking out this thread on the IC2 forums. It is a discussion of just that; the cooling of reactors with cooling cells than then get removed and are cooled elsewhere. To be sure, its a lot more complicated than a standard MK1 setup, but the power you get more than makes up for it - i'm currently working on a setup that delivers a magnificent 5440eu/t.

 

[BlackFiction]

Hi Guys,
Im using this post because of the same problem, i want to use ThoriumBreeders: (like this) http://www.talonfiremage.pwp.blueyo...d86ha6kdjhzpovpamfg3lwj83ro1l0ek1sbc7es2zu51c
but i want to autorefill them...
I Use the Ultimate Modpack and i thougt it would be possible with aplied energistics. but its really hard so can someone help me with this?

Problem is that you not only have to change the Thorium you have to change the re-enriched cells with new enrichable ones...

Thank you guys and sorry for my really bad english, i should learn more

 

[Omicron]

I highly recommend using an uranium breeder instead, migrating to a different modpack, or downgrading your GregTech version. FTB Ultimate shipped a broken beta version of GregTech intended just as a preview/test of upcoming 1.5.x features, and as a result, thorium is horribly broken. A single cell only ticks once every 5 seconds (instead of once a second), and power output basically doesn't scale with neighbors (but heat output does).