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Originally Posted by jamesqf
Not flipping end over end, no. But spinning in circles 'cause the idiot driving didn't realize that 4WD doesn't improve your steering control, yes, several times. And what else is new?
Anyway, you're missing the point. You've made up some superficially plausible thing that could go wrong, sort of like the theory that hybrids were going to electrocute rescuers after accidents, or that magnetic fields from electric cars would cause cancer, and try to use that as a justification for not developing what might be a useful technology. The point is that if you bother to actually think about what's involved, instead of running in circles claiming that the sky is falling, you soon see that your superficially plausible threat is nothing of the sort.
Start with your basic thesis: that the bearings of a flywheel might somehow seize up, and suddenly transfer the momentum of the flywheel to the whole car, causing it to tumble end-over-end down the highway. The first problem is that a sensible energy-storage flywheel design uses magnetic bearings, spinning in a vacuum. There's no physical contact, and thus nothing to seize. Second, the flywheels are built of things like carbon fiber, so when subject to a sudden severe stress of that sort, they would harmlessly disintegrate into tiny pieces.
You know, you can actually look up these things on the web. People have built these sorts of flywheels, and destroyed some of them in testing. It's something called engineering, you know.
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I'm actually very interested in the whole concept.I'm playing the Devil's advocate simply out of safety regards.I've seen inside of Chrysler a little, and they've done some very clever things over the decades.I figured maybe,if they couldn't pull it off,and were afraid of it,then it was worth mention.-------------------- I think the reason we've ended up with the electric hybrid,is that it accomplishes much of what the flywheel might,and with very high efficiencies for motor/generators,inverters,batteries,'n such,they can recover decent levels of braking energy,store it,and then re-deliver it to the traction motor with "seamless" operation.--------------- I've got some articles on the super-flywheels,with the magnetic-bearings,operating in a vacuum.For a stationary unit,the challenges of impact-loading on the bearings would be cut to zero.Pot-holes might be a challenge,as "jerk" loads are the most severe for engineering applications.--------------------------- I like BicycleBob's idea of the rotating magnet and faraday-coil export of power.My oldest brother would caution,that because of the geometric relationship between Gauss at the rotor,and losses at a distance from it,that extremely tight tolerances would have to exist the rotor(flywheel) and inside of the vaccum vessel,and the coil would probably have to be embedded in the vessel itself,to allow close proximity to the rotor magnetic flux.-------------------- All my uncles were involved in aerospace.One in particular,with North American Rockwell,had explained to me that they manufactured some of their products with "spin-welding" technology,where two structures are allowed to touch while one spins,and the friction generated at the interface is enough to produce a permanent weld.----------------- This accounts for my reservations about what might happen should the vacuum fail and windage effects overcome the magnetic separation,causing the bearings to weld.If the rotor does not contact the inner surface of it's container and self-destruct,all the energy will be transferred out via the shaft perhes.I think Chrysler may have experienced this.----------------------------------- And evidently,with their Patriot-Car program,the flywheels can store kinetic-energy levels great enough,that should the rotor weld-up,whatever the supporting structure is that contains the flywheel,it is going to go for quite a ride,depending on axis of rotation and CG of the vehicle.---------------- I'd love to see 'em make it work