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Flywheel Energy Storage System

Flywheel energy storage systems store kinetic energy by constantly spinning a compact rotor in a low-friction environment. When power is needed, the rotor's inertia allows it to continue spinning and the kinetic energy is converted to electricity. Flywheels integrate a motor, flywheel rotor, and generator into a single system, with the motor spinning the flywheel constantly to maintain kinetic energy and the generator converting that energy to electricity when needed. Flywheels can provide power during grid fluctuations and offer faster energy transfer rates than batteries, but current systems have low energy density and safety concerns due to the high-speed rotor.

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397 views18 pages

Flywheel Energy Storage System

Flywheel energy storage systems store kinetic energy by constantly spinning a compact rotor in a low-friction environment. When power is needed, the rotor's inertia allows it to continue spinning and the kinetic energy is converted to electricity. Flywheels integrate a motor, flywheel rotor, and generator into a single system, with the motor spinning the flywheel constantly to maintain kinetic energy and the generator converting that energy to electricity when needed. Flywheels can provide power during grid fluctuations and offer faster energy transfer rates than batteries, but current systems have low energy density and safety concerns due to the high-speed rotor.

Uploaded by

Imtiaz Fiaz
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Flywheel Rotor Energy

Storage System

Flywheel
A flywheel, in essence is a mechanical battery - simply a mass rotating
about an axis.
Flywheels store energy mechanically in the form of kinetic energy.
They take an electrical input to accelerate the rotor up to speed by
using the built-in motor, and return the electrical energy by using this
same motor as a generator.
They may still prove to serve us as an important component on
tomorrow's vehicles and future energy needs.

Flywheel
Provide continuous energy when the energy source is not continuous.
Deliver energy at rates beyond the ability of an energy source.
Control the orientation of a mechanical system.

Introduction
Flywheel energy storage systems store kinetic energy (i.e. energy
produced by motion) by constantly spinning a compact rotor in a
low-friction environment.
When short-term back-up power is required (i.e. when utility power
fluctuates or is lost), the rotor's inertia allows it to continue
spinning and the resulting kinetic energy is converted to electricity.

Flywheel
Technology

Integrates the function of a motor, flywheel rotor and generator into a


single integrated system.
The motor, which uses electric current from the utility grid to provide
energy to rotate the flywheel, spins constantly to maintain a ready
source of kinetic energy.

Flywheel Technology
The generator then converts the kinetic energy of the flywheel into
electricity. This integration of functionality reduces the cost and
increases product efficiency.
The flywheel rotor spins in a near frictionless environment, created by
Active Power's patented magnetic bearing technology.

Principles
The efficiency in the chamber is further enhanced by the creation of a
rough vacuum, which reduces drag on the spinning flywheel.
As power is transferred to the load, the flywheel's speed decreases.
Additional current is then supplied to the field coil to ensure that the
voltage output remains constant throughout discharge.
This enables the flywheel system to provide ride through power during
power disturbances.

Flywheel Technology

Stored Energy
Stored energy = sum of kinetic energy of individual mass elements that
comprise the flywheel
Kinetic Energy = 1/2*I*w2 , where
I = moment of inertia (ability of an obeject to resist

changes in its rotational velocity)


w = rotational velocity (rpm)
I = k*M*R2 (M=mass; R=radius);
k = inertial constant (depends on shape)

Inertial constants for


different shapes
Wheel loaded at rim (bike tire); k = 1
solid disk of uniform thickness; k = 1/2
solid sphere; k = 2/5
spherical shell; k = 2/3
thin rectangular rod; k =
In order to optimize the energy to mass ratio, the flywheel needs to
spin at the maximum possible speed. Because kinetic energy only
increases linearly with Mass but goes as the square of the rotational
speed.

Rapidly rotating objects are subject to centrifugal forces that can rip
them apart. Centrifugal force for a rotating object goes as M*R*w2 .
Thus while dense material can store more energy it is also subject to
higher centrifugal force and thus fails at lower rotational speeds than
low density material. Therefore the tensile strength is more important
than the density of the material.

Flywheel Energy Storage System


(FES)
In addition to energy density, flywheel energy storage systems (FES)
also offer several important advantages over chemical energy storage.
The rate at which energy can be exchanged into or out of the battery is
limited only by the motor-generator design.
Therefore, it is possible to withdraw large amounts of energy in a far
shorter time than with traditional chemical batteries.

Act as
Gyroscope

When used in vehicles, flywheels also act as gyroscopes, since their


angular momentum is typically of a similar order of magnitude as the
forces acting on the moving vehicle.
This property may be detrimental to the vehicle's handling
characteristics while turning. On the other hand, this property could be
utilized to keep the car balanced so as to keep it from rolling over
during sharp turns.

Advantages
Flywheels store energy very efficiently (high turn-around efficiency)
and have the potential for very high specific power compared with
batteries.
Flywheels have very high output potential and relatively long life.
Flywheels are relatively unaffected by ambient temperature extremes.

Disadvantages
Current flywheels have low specific energy. There are safety concerns
associated with flywheels due to their high speed rotor and the
possibility of it breaking loose & releasing all of it's energy in an
uncontrolled manner.
Flywheels are a less mature technology than chemical batteries, and
the current cost is too high to make them competitive in the market.

Conclusion
Flywheels are one of the most promising technologies for replacing
conventional lead acid batteries as energy storage systems for a variety
of applications, including automobiles, economical rural electrification
systems, and stand-alone, remote power units commonly used in the
telecommunications industry.
Recent advances in the mechanical properties of composites has
rekindled interest in using the inertia of a spinning wheel to store
energy.

REFERENCES
Processes and Materials of Manufacture by R.A. LINDBER
www.edufive.com/seminartopics.htm
www.pcmag.com/encyclopedia
www.me.sc.edu
http://newtechpapers.com/MEpapers2.html

Thank you

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