VOA标准英语2009年-Nanotechnology Offers Some Solutions t

Tiny nanomaterials show promise in many efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions¹

Rosanne Skirble | Washington, DC 03 December 2009

Sir Lankan village shop at dusk lit by solar panels - Nanotechnology could help make solar cells more accessible, efficient and affordable²

Nanoparticles are tiny. These unique materials, sometimes comprising only a few atoms or molecules³, can be manipulated to make new materials with novel properties. Some are better at conducting electricity or heat. Others are lighter⁴, harder or more durable⁵. Nanoparticles are already inside hundreds of consumer products from bicycle parts and tennis racquets, to clothing and cosmetics⁶.  Andrew Maynard, chief science advisor⁷ for the Emerging Nanotechnology Project at Washington's Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, says nanomaterials could help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which is a major goal of the upcoming international climate talks in Copenhagen.

 

Making solar cells more affordable and efficient

Maynard says nanoparticles show a lot of promise in renewable energy fields like solar power.   "One of the technologies which is being looked at is roll-to-roll technologies for solar cells, where effectively we can print the next generation of solar cells on flexible surfaces. That not only makes it very cheap, but it also means that we can use these new cells in new innovative⁸ ways."     

Lighter vehicles use less fuel

Next to China, the U.S. is the world's largest polluter. Twenty-eight percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions are from transportation. Maynard says nanomaterials can help reverse that trend.  "If you can make a car or an airplane which is far lighter than current ones, and yet still being stronger and safer, you can reduce the engine required to get from point A to point B. And again, nanotechnology is allowing us to do that," he says.

Nano-additives in diesel⁹ fuel have also shown to increase efficiency and reduce emissions.  Maynard says nanotechnology could also increase battery storage capacity. With an expanding electric vehicle market, rechargeable batteries would be in great demand. "And a number of companies are currently working on developing relevant batteries which are going to be far more powerful, be able to store far more energy and release that energy far faster than conventional batteries because they are being engineered," he says.

Nanotechnology could make hydrogen fuel a viable¹⁰ option

Maynard also says that nanotechnology could help launch hydrogen as an alternative to fossil fuels. When it burns, he says, the byproduct is water. "There are two components¹¹ to this.   You've got the fuel cell, which converts the hydrogen and oxygen into electricity, but then you've got the tank that holds your hydrogen. It's the tank that holds the hydrogen, which is one of the really difficult parts at the moment. Because one of the only options that it seems is available at the moment is to compress this hydrogen to very, very high pressures and put it into a tank, which is inherently unsafe." 

Maynard says nanotechnology offers some solutions to the hydrogen fuel safety problem by creating materials that can be packed full of hydrogen, not at low temperatures and not at high pressures. "There you've got an intrinsically safe way of transporting your hydrogen around, ready to put into your fuel cell whenever you need it."

Questions remain about the safety of nanomaterials

But Maynard says, as new nanomaterials are developed, safety remains¹² a legitimate¹³ concern. "There is still some uncertainly about the new materials and how they might spread through the environment, how they might affect environmental organisms and how they might affect humans if we are exposed to them. So there's research there that needs to be done, but certainly I don't think there are any insurmountable problems."     
   
And he believes that onnce they've established their utility and safety, nanoscale materials will eventually complement¹⁴ existing technologies in helping¹⁵ to mitigate¹⁶ the impact of climate change.
 

1 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

2 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

3 molecules   

分子( molecule的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The structure of molecules can be seen under an electron microscope. 分子的结构可在电子显微镜下观察到。
• Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules. 在反应堆里，大分子裂变为小分子。

4 lighter   

n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级

参考例句：

• The portrait was touched up so as to make it lighter.这张画经过润色，色调明朗了一些。
• The lighter works off the car battery.引燃器利用汽车蓄电池打火。

5 durable   

adj.持久的，耐久的

参考例句：

• This raincoat is made of very durable material.这件雨衣是用非常耐用的料子做的。
• They frequently require more major durable purchases.他们经常需要购买耐用消费品。

6 cosmetics   

n.化妆品

参考例句：

• We sell a wide range of cosmetics at a very reasonable price. 我们以公道的价格出售各种化妆品。
• Cosmetics do not always cover up the deficiencies of nature. 化妆品未能掩饰天生的缺陷。

7 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

8 innovative   

adj.革新的，新颖的，富有革新精神的

参考例句：

• Discover an innovative way of marketing.发现一个创新的营销方式。
• He was one of the most creative and innovative engineers of his generation.他是他那代人当中最富创造性与革新精神的工程师之一。

9 diesel   

n.柴油发动机，内燃机

参考例句：

• We experimented with diesel engines to drive the pumps.我们试着用柴油机来带动水泵。
• My tractor operates on diesel oil.我的那台拖拉机用柴油开动。

10 viable   

adj.可行的，切实可行的，能活下去的

参考例句：

• The scheme is economically viable.这个计划从经济效益来看是可行的。
• The economy of the country is not viable.这个国家经济是难以维持的。

11 components   

（机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分

参考例句：

• the components of a machine 机器部件
• Our chemistry teacher often reduces a compound to its components in lab. 在实验室中化学老师常把化合物分解为各种成分。

12 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

13 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

14 complement   

n.补足物，船上的定员；补语；vt.补充，补足

参考例句：

• The two suggestions complement each other.这两条建议相互补充。
• They oppose each other also complement each other.它们相辅相成。

15 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

16 mitigate   

vt.（使）减轻，（使）缓和

参考例句：

• The government is trying to mitigate the effects of inflation.政府正试图缓和通货膨胀的影响。
• Governments should endeavour to mitigate distress.政府应努力缓解贫困问题。