SMES

Superconducting Magnetic Energy Storage (often shortened to SMES, pronounced ss-mess) systems store energy in a magnetic field. The power is collected by means of a terminal: . In order for these to charge and power the station you must know the approximate power level going into the unit. Then set the SMES to charge and set the input level to as close as you can but not over the power level you know is going into it. If the ship keeps losing power you can set the output of the SMESes higher, but you should only set the output power greater than the input power as a temporary emergency measure for obvious reasons. Always try to have the SMESes charging so you have backup power in case there are problems with the Engine.

Keep in mind every SMES you don't use or that you feel is critical, you can adjust the input up on it to help it charge. Also remember that if it isn't charging because there isn't adequate power to cover all your inputs and it doesn't have much backup power, it will automatically turn off. Proper maintenance of your SMESes can have you operate a ship at enormously low power levels. Also that your maximum usage will not always directly represent your input levels in all the SMESes. It will be close, and as such make sure you know what your power drain is. Remember, if the Engine isn't providing enough power for your SMESes input level, then your SMESes are not going to charge.

Working with SMESes

This information is based off my experiences aboard the NSV Exodus.

First of all, you must recognize that power aboard NSV Exodus is an important task. There are two main elements to power. You have the Singularity and the Solars to generate the power, and you have SMESes to distribute and store it.

This focuses on SMESes. For a guide on the Engine itself, see Engine.

NSV Exodus has Three "Primary" SMES circuits, one "Backup" Engineering SMES, and one SMES for the AI. They are located in the room directly west upon entering Engineering. The power is generated from the Radiation Collector, which is directly fed into the SMES's. There is also a single Engineering SMES which maintains the Engineering Bay. This was put in case of catastrophic failure, the Singularity's containment field will still hold for long enough for the Engineers to react accordingly. The AI SMES is a isolated power supply for the AI.

The Three Main SMES's and Engineering Power directly convert the Radiation Collector's output into usable power. Since you can get an exact amount of power the Engine is outputting, you can figure out exactly how much input you can do. The power requirements, which can change, are thus:

• Primary Station Power: Approximately 125000W-180000W.
• Engineering: Approximately 15000W-30000W
• AI: 10000W-15000W

Primary Power

First of all, the locations. Your primary SMESes are in the room directly to the left upon entering Engineering. The terminal in both the SMES room, and in the Engineering Break Room can show you how much power the Engine outputs, as well as the amount of power the Primary SMESes in put out, while the Power Monitering Computer in both the CE's Office and the SMES room will tell you where all the power is used.

Engineering Power

There is a single SMES in the Engine Bay that is used to power Engineering. To start generating power, the Singularity needs to be running, or the Solars have to be wired. All you need to do to this SMES is bump up the Input a little, to somewhere around 70000W.

Adjusting the SMESes

You need to ensure you provide enough power in the SMES outputs to fill the power. If absolutely necessary, the Station can run on a single SMES, but the Engine will need to provide the maximum amount of power to maintain this. It is suggested to have the unnecessary SMES's charging as well, so in the case of Engine failure, the Station still has power. The SMESes will use the full output in sequence. Everything in addition to the output that is used (not set, but used) will go to the SMES's charge.

One example of SMES configuration

This is the ideal settings from my experience as an Engineer.

The below setup needs you to make the Singularity produce around the standard 200000W.

Primary Power: 175000W-200000W Input for the 3 main SMESes 60000W-100000W Output for the 3 main SMESes.

Engineering SMESes Set to 75000W Input, 30000-50000W Output

AI SMES: Set to 50000W Input, 30000W Output