Question

A car is fitted with an energy conserving flywheel, which in operation is geared to the driveshaft so that it rotates at 237 rev/s when the car is traveling at 86.5 km/h. The total mass of the car is 862 kg, the flywheel weighs 184 N, and it is a uniform disc 1.22 m in diameter. The car descends a 1500 m long, 5.00 degree slope, starting from rest, with the flywheel engaged and no power supplied from the motor. Ignore any moving parts such as wheels or parts of the drivetrain, besides the flywheel. Neglecting friction, find (a) the speed of the car at the bottom of the slope, (b) the angular acceleration of the flywheel during the descent, and (c) the power being absorbed by the flywheel at the bottom of the slope.

Answer 1