Why make composite flywheels?
The faster we can spin a flywheel and the more massive we can make it, the flywheel, the more kinetic energy we can store in it. However, at extreme speeds, even metal flywheels can literally tear themselves apart from the shear forces which are generated. Further, the energy storage characteristics of the flywheel are influenced more strongly by its maximal rotational velocity than by its mass. So a stronger, lighter flywheel may be able to store as much or more energy than its metalic counterpart.
