Flywheel Energy Management Systems for Improving the Fuel Economy of Motor Vehicles

摘要

The goals of the research program have been: (1) to develop, analyze and compare CVT designs to minimize the friction losses and weight of an integrated flywheel powerplant package, (2) to provide preliminary designs of flywheel propulsion systems for automobiles and minibuses, (3) to study the economic feasibility of production, (4) to obtain additional operational experience and experimental data on the research flywheel vehicle built at the University. The experimental flywheel vehicle has demonstrated 32 mpg over the EPA-CVS Federal Urban Driving Cycle at an inertia weight of 2750 lb. Calculations based on experimental engine data indicate that federally-mandated emissions levels could be achieved with little degradation in fuel economy. The computer simulation programs developed have been verified by experiment.