Alien energy cell principles

[Preda]

To my everlasting shame, I cannot comprehend the principle behind them. Did anyone understand it? What exactly is a 'flywheel'?

[Kret]

Erm, what exactly are you talking about? Do you mean the explanation of it when the research is completed? If not, what then?

[Accounting Troll]

I think it's the scientific principle of how they work. I know that a flywheel is a revolving wheel inside a machine, and that it provide a reserve of power, but I don't understand the scientific principle behind it.

[Stefan100]

The alien energy cell principles? Will be going to check it out. Dont remember so well...

 

Edit:

 

I have read little about flywheels now, but I didn't understand it so well. From what I have read an understand a flywheel is a kind of wheel that is able to store kinetic energy, and can both store it and use it in a short period of time.

 

I don't know if this explanation is right, (I have just read a little fast about it in a national encyclopedia) but if someone can explain it better please do it.

[Accounting Troll]

The use of mechanical flywheels seems to be unusual for the Reticulans. Their weapons and equipment are mostly genetically engineered life forms that are grown instead of being manufactured.

 

People and animals generate electricity in their muscles - sharks find their prey by detecting this electrical field, and the electric eel has turned this generation of electricity into an offensive weapon. It would seem more like the Reticulans to make use of this phenonemon.

[Preda]

The use of mechanical flywheels seems to be unusual for the Reticulans.

[Accounting Troll]

That link makes interesting reading - I wonder if the game designers were inspired by the book.

[GigiDuru]

From what I have read an understand a flywheel is a kind of wheel that is able to store kinetic energy, and can both store it and use it in a short period of time.

Flywheels are indeed "classic" parts of human mechanisms (the car engine for instance) and indeed this is a form of energy stored then released. So in theory this could work.

 

However, in human mechanisms, there is generally one big flywheel instead of a plentiful of small ones and physics gives the perfect explanation for that. The amount of kinetic energy stored in a flywheel depends on its mass, shape and rotation speed. If you replace the big flywheel with several smaller ones (thus occupying the same space), these have to rotate faster than the big one to store the same amount of energy. Which is more difficult to get technologically.

 

So the flywheel batteries won't be soon available in convenience stores on Earth - and probably this is exactly the point. Every item of alien technology in UFO:AM seems very remote from the technology we have today. This is probably done on purpose and it adds to the realism of the storyline: "serious" aliens just cannot expect to take over the world with the technology we'll have in the next 5 years. Besides, what if I still want to enjoy the game in 5 years?

 

So IMHO the flywheel batteries are a tall tale but a good one as it serves the good cause of game realism.