Damn Interesting has an excellent article talking about the fly-wheel and how it could be used to power the next green car that comes on the market.
- Damn Interesting » The Mechanical Battery
The fly-wheel has the potential to store far more energy than standard batteries, but it is dangerous as well.
As interesting as the article was, the comments are even more fascinating and from the people who actually worked on this project:
- Damn Interesting » The Mechanical Battery – Comment from Radiatidon
With an ear-piercing squeal the highly spinning metal gave off its death cry. The device literally came apart sending shrapnel in a vector perpendicular to the common axis of the flywheel. The safety shield that encased the device did not live up to its design as the debris tore through it like so much tissue paper. Unfortunately there was a fellow standing in front of it when this happened. Like a scene out of some sick horror flick, he was instantly split from crotch to forehead. Considering the amount of damage, it was amazing that we suffered only the one death.
The project was canceled shortly after that.
…as interesting as this article is, I wish that I had not read the damn thing. It brought back bad memories. Memories that are just as vivid as if it just happened. I was standing next to him, and as he fell I tried to catch him
Let’s take a moment and thank the researchers who have given their lives trying to design more energy efficient vehicles.
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