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U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Regenerative flywheel energy storage system

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:6403683

The current status of a program to develop and evaluate a regenerative flywheel energy storage system is described. The system has been designed for a battery/flywheel electric vehicle in the 3000 pound class. Planned laboratory tests will simulate this electric vehicle operating over the SAE J227a Schedule D driving cycle. The range improvement attributed to the use of the flywheel will be established. The flywheel energy storage system will consist of a solid rotor, synchronous inductor-type flywheel drive machine electrically coupled to a dc battery electric propulsion system through a load commutated inverter. The motor/alternator unit is coupled mechanically to a small steel flywheel which regenerates the vehicle's braking energy. The laboratory simulation of the battery/flywheel propulsion system will include a 108 V lead--acid battery bank, a separately excited dc propulsion motor coupled to a flywheel which simulates the vehicle's inertia, and the flywheel energy storage system comprised of the motor/flywheel unit, the load commutated inverter and its control.

Research Organization:
General Electric Co., Schenectady, NY (USA). Corporate Research and Development Dept.
DOE Contract Number:
W-7405-ENG-48
OSTI ID:
6403683
Report Number(s):
UCRL-13982
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English