Flywheel Battery

Photo credits: Center for Electromechanics, University of Texas @ Austin

CEM partnered with Mohawk Innovative Technology to design and build a 7.5 MJ, 250 kW flywheel generator which operates at 30,000 rpm.  Complicating the design requirements, this flywheel will be operated at high altitudes on-board a plane.

Design / Solid Modeling:

• Served as lead mechanical engineer on generator design.
• Specified and ordered titanium forging, permanent magnets and created all engineering drawings for the machine build.
• Collaborated on elaborate assembly procedure of the magnet cartridge.

Analysis:

• Performed detailed transient thermal analyses on helium cooled stator coils and rotor composite bandings, which significantly guided machine design.
  • Accounted for stator radial/axial windage, lamination and winding losses.
  • Incorporated radial/axial banding windage, air gap windage and magnet losses.