| 摘要 |
A flywheel 70 for kinetic energy storage fabricated using composite materials and a corresponding method of manufacture are provided. The flywheel 70 comprises an outer annular rotor 26 and an inner annulus 66, having a longitudinal axis and comprising fibres in a matrix material. The fibres are in the form of at least one tow wound about the axis such that each successive tow winding is located adjacent to the preceding tow winding in the axial direction, with substantially no spacing therebetween and substantially no overlap with the preceding tow winding. The winding angle between the at least one tow and a normal to the longitudinal axis of the rotor is 2° or less. When a flywheel having this configuration fails as a result of fatigue, material flaw growth and high temperatures, it splits into two or more rings along planes perpendicular to its longitudinal axis. This failure mode is considerably more benign than an explosive burst failure as exhibited by known flywheels. |
