Abstract
The technical report details a capstone project with the goal of measuring the thermal conductivity of different materials at extremely low temperatures. Thermal conductivity is an intrinsic yet temperature dependent property that measures how well a material dissipates heat. A key application of this work is quantum computing, where cryogenic temperatures are needed to maintain the quantum states that enable high performance computing. To perform the tests, a cryostat would be required, which is an expensive device that can create an extremely low temperature environment. Due to the high cost of a new cryostat, an old and discarded cryopump was refurbished into a cryostat instead. A cryopump uses a compressor and helium to generate temperatures as low as 10 Kelvin (-440 degrees Fahrenheit) to freeze air and create a strong vacuum. The refurbishment process included reusing the helium system, building a frame to hold the cryostat, adding a plate with a vacuum connection, implementing electrical connections, and constructing a chuck to hold the material sample plus its attached sensors. The completed cryostat was not able to reach the desired temperature, but the project was still successful as thermal conductivity data gathered at room temperature agreed with manufacturer specifications. The STS research paper examines how a promising technology like nuclear energy has failed to live up to its potential in the United States. I claim that nuclear energy is clean, safe, and abundant, yet it is the societal factors of the United States that limit its success and result in a stagnated industry. These societal factors are identified as political, social, and economic. Based on the Social Construct of Technology, I examine case studies and quantitative data to determine how the three societal factors influence the success of nuclear energy in the United States more than its objective and technical merits. I found that fraud, corruption, and mismanagement are major political factors that make nuclear energy prone to scandals. Social factors that create a hostile environment for nuclear energy include public fear, the dominance of neutral and negative attitudes, and nationwide preference for renewable energy. Finally, economic factors like rigid regulations, absurd construction costs, and lack of streamlined production make nuclear energy prohibitively expensive. Combined, these three factors have caused nuclear energy to stagnate in the United States. However, there is still hope for the industry as climate change and data centers drive up the demand for clean and abundant energy, while also encouraging more people to reconsider nuclear energy as a key energy source for our nation's future.
Notes
School of Engineering and Applied Science
Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering
Technical Advisor: Ethan Scott
STS Advisor: Karina Ripley
Technical Team Members: Mia Petersen, Mary Cotter, Mohammad Ahmadzai, Andrea Rojas Ramirez, Brandon Flores
Castaneda, Matthew Alexander Orellana-Aquino, Raymond Ni, Philip Li, Jimmy Chen, Jonathan
Martinez, Tristan Huynh, Jimmy Bastos Infantas, Hannah Heafner
