Steam Turbine

Produces up to 108 W from 90 t/h Steam. Its script-owned throttle scales both consumption and output.

Stats: Power out +108 W · Consumes Steam, up to 90 t/h, buffer 100 t

How to obtain: Requires the Steam Turbine research (Pressure 3). Buy from the Shop for 7,500 cr.

Access: self / get_component(id) · Like every component, exposes .id and .name.

No water side

In this build the turbine is a pure steam-to-power machine. Water for Mk III machines comes from wells and the Steam Condenser, not from the turbine.

Methods

.outpost

The outpost where this building is deployed, as an OutpostRef.

Returns: OutpostRef

.power_output()

Watts fed to the grid on the last power tick. Scales with throttle() and the steam actually available. 0 when idle or steam-starved. Updates once per power tick; a fresh set_throttle(...) is reflected on the next tick, not the same one. Use for live dashboards or to compare against Oxygen / Heat consumption to balance the power budget.

Returns: Number (watts)

.efficiency()

Fraction of the throttle’s desired steam actually drawn on the last power tick (0.0-1.0). 1.0 = the turbine got all the steam its throttle asked for. Below 1 means steam-starved (vent dormant, or upstream can’t keep up). Use to detect whether the turbine is being fed enough.

Returns: Number (0-1)

.is_stalled()

True when the throttle is up but no steam is arriving (the vent is dormant or the steam line is disconnected). Check self.steam_in.level() (upstream) and the feeding Cap’s vent phase to diagnose. There is no water side to back up anymore.

Returns: Boolean

.throttle()

Current throttle setting (0.0-1.0). 0 = off: the turbine consumes no steam and produces nothing (the default; idle until set_throttle() is called). Higher values draw more steam and produce more power, up to the peak at 1.0. Read-only view of what set_throttle() last committed.

Returns: Number (0-1)

.set_throttle(t) SELF ONLY

Set the turbine throttle (0.0-1.0, clamped). 0 switches the turbine off (no steam consumed, no power). 1.0 draws full steam for peak watts. self.set_throttle(1.0) runs it flat out; ease down when the steam buffer runs dry so it isn’t spinning on empty, e.g. if self.steam_in.level() < 5: self.set_throttle(0.3). This script-owned setpoint resets to 0 when the script stops, ends, or errors.

Returns: ActionResult · Outcomes: "ok"

.steam_in

Input flow port accepting steam from a Thermal Cap or Gas Tank. Call self.steam_in.connect(...) with the source’s stable machine id or display name. A local source transfers directly; a remote source also needs a completed conflict-free Gas Pipe route between both locations. self.steam_in.level() shows the buffer: low = about to run dry; full = source is backpressured. See FluidPort.

Returns: FluidPort

Command mailbox

peek_command() · next_command() · command_count() · clear_commands() (SELF ONLY): see Script Commands.

See also

• Thermal Vents: the steam source
• Tier 3 Progression: turbines compete with Heat Mk III and the Steam Condenser for steam