Inspiration: We were inspired by one of the leading industries that is beginning to grow outside of already in place infrastructure. This would be data centers and AI, which now use 1-2% of all global power (hundreds of millions of Kilowatts). We took directly from how Constellation Energy is turning back on Three Mile Island Unit 1 to power a Microsoft data center in order to decarbonize.
What it does: Our simulator and website take in a desired target power level for a data center, adn it send this to the simulator that then adjusts the power level and displays the new power level on our website. Our simulator makes these calculations by considering factors such as the control rod insertion, reactivity, pump flow rates, and much more.
How we built it: For our website, we used React and Vite to display the simulator information and components. To make our simulator, we used Java.
Challenges we ran into: The accurate simulation of an entire Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) is a lofty goal, and with the time frame, we had to be diligent with how much and where we spent our effort.
Accomplishments that we're proud of: We are very proud of making a website that takes in target energies, sends it to the reactor simulator, and then the reactor simulator adjusts power output accordingly back to our website.
What we learned: We learned a lot from the fact that we are a team made up of two Nuclear Engineering Majors and a Computer Science major. We were able to learn from each other in areas that we were originally unfamiliar to us. We also all came in with different skill levels in coding, and we all were able to improve our skills in various languages.
What's next for NuclearPWR: We plan to improve the efficiency of the simulator, and we also plan to further enhance the reactor by taking into account the passive safety systems that come with a real reactor.
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