Flywheel

A rotating mass that stores energy as rotational kinetic energy and resists changes in a machine’s speed by exchanging angular momentum.

Moment of inertia: A measure of how strongly a body resists changes in its rotational motion, determined by its mass distribution around an axis. It sets how much energy the flywheel stores at a given rotational speed.
Flywheel energy storage: A storage method that converts electrical energy into rotational kinetic energy and later converts it back. It uses a flywheel as a rechargeable buffer for electrical power.
Angular velocity: A vector describing the rate and direction of rotation about an axis. It is the speed variable used to calculate a flywheel’s stored energy.
Accumulator (hydraulics): A pressure vessel that stores energy by compressing gas, raising a weight, or deforming a spring in a hydraulic system. It buffers hydraulic pressure and flow using stored potential energy rather than rotation.
Rotational kinetic energy: The energy of a rotating body, equal to half its moment of inertia multiplied by angular speed squared. This is the energy stored in a spinning flywheel.
Internal combustion engine: An engine that produces power by burning fuel inside a cylinder or combustion chamber. Its flywheel smooths torque pulses between power strokes and helps start the engine.
Stress–strain curve: A graph showing how a material deforms under applied stress, including its elastic and failure limits. A rim spinning at high speed must withstand large tensile stresses.
Supercapacitor: An electrochemical capacitor that stores energy through charge separation at electrode surfaces. It offers rapid electrical storage without a high-speed rotor.
Angular momentum: A conserved measure of rotational motion determined by a body's moment of inertia and angular velocity. The flywheel’s angular momentum makes its rotation resist disturbances.
Uninterruptible power supply: A system that provides backup electrical power when the main supply fails or deviates from acceptable limits. A flywheel can bridge brief power interruptions while another source starts.

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