Word: flywheel
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...flywheel in Rosen Motors' power train is something different altogether. It is a roughly 12-in. by 7-in. cylinder that hangs suspended in a vacuum from magnetic bearings and normally spins at 55,000 r.p.m.; today's cars run at an average of 2,000 r.p.m. The energy of the flywheel is stored in this rapid rotation, which generates electricity on demand. In the Rosens' power train, the flywheel works in conjunction with a gas-driven microturbine to make...
...handful of companies are working on advanced flywheel systems to power automobiles, buses and even trains. One company, U.S. Flywheel, is developing a car that uses a series of flywheels, with no gas engine at all. The flywheels would be recharged as batteries are. Rosen Motors will be first to the finish line, says Ben. "There are lots of others working on this. We think we will be there earlier and with better technology...
...very different sources. The first is a high-powered turbine--a mini-jet engine if you will--that will keep your car purring along on the freeway with just a spit of gas every now and then. For quick acceleration and hill climbing, the turbine is linked to a flywheel, an energy-producing and energy-storing contraption that is at least as old as the first potter's wheel--a stone that had to be heavy enough to continue turning between kicks from someone's foot. Flywheels were a prominent feature of the Industrial Revolution, delivering a smooth flow...
Most of the auto companies and academics who have heard of this design think the Rosens are spinning their wheels. Of course, the auto companies thought the Japanese didn't have a clue either, but they've also invested billions of dollars in flywheel technology without coming up with much. Says Harold: "Detroit never took hybrids seriously. They weren't thinking broadly enough." Chrysler tried, and failed, to field a race car with a turbo-flywheel power train (the engine and transmission) a couple of years...
...biological diversity and genetic heritage. Moreover, the burning of the Amazon could have dramatic effects on global weather patterns -- for example, heightening the warming trend that may result from the greenhouse effect. "The Amazon is a library for life sciences, the world's greatest pharmaceutical laboratory and a flywheel of climate," says Thomas Lovejoy of the Smithsonian Institution. "It's a matter of global destiny...