Flywheel Energy Storage in São Tomé and Príncipe: Powering
a tropical paradise where flywheel energy storage spins quietly beneath palm trees, keeping the lights on during monsoon season. Sounds like science fiction? For São Tomé and Príncipe,
A typical system consists of a flywheel supported by rolling-element bearing connected to a motor–generator. The flywheel and sometimes motor–generator may be enclosed in a vacuum chamber to reduce friction and energy loss. First-generation flywheel energy-storage systems use a large steel flywheel rotating on mechanical bearings.
In 2010, Beacon Power began testing of their Smart Energy 25 (Gen 4) flywheel energy storage system at a wind farm in Tehachapi, California. The system was part of a wind power and flywheel demonstration project being carried out for the California Energy Commission.
One of the primary limits to flywheel design is the tensile strength of the rotor. Generally speaking, the stronger the disc, the faster it may be spun, and the more energy the system can store.
While some systems use low mass/high speed rotors, other use very massive rotors eg 200 tonnes and correspondingly much lower rotational speeds, referred to as grid-scale flywheel energy storage.
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