新奇事件簿 新型超薄材料让建筑更凉爽（在线收听）

A team of engineers has created a super-thin material that could help keep buildings cool. The team is from the University of Colorado Boulder in the USA. Engineers from the university developed the revolutionary new material, that is very thin and can cool objects even under direct sunlight. The material does not need energy to work nor does it need water to help keep things cool. The engineers say the new material could provide an answer to air conditioners, which are expensive to run and need a lot of water. The material is unlike anything found in nature. It is a glass-polymer hybrid that is just 50 micrometers thick. That's slightly thicker than the aluminium foil we use for cooking.

一些工程师发明了一种超薄材料，可以让建筑保持凉爽。该研究小组来自美国科罗拉多大学波尔得分校。这所大学的工程师开发了这种革命性的新材料，非常薄，即使在阳光直射下也可以让物体保持凉爽。这种材料不需要消耗能量，也不需要水来保持物体凉爽。工程师们表示，这种新材料可以为空调提供解决方案，因为空调运作起来成本很高，需要很多水。这种材料与大自然中找到的任何材料都不同。这种材料是玻璃聚合物，厚度只有几微米，只比用来烹饪的铝箔厚一点。

The engineers explained how their new material works. They said when it is put on top of something, two things happen. The first thing is that it cools the object underneath by reflecting the sun's rays back into space. At the same time, the second thing happens - the material removes the object's own heat and sends that into the air. An engineer said: "The key advantage of this technology is that it works 24/7 with no electricity or water usage….We're excited about the opportunity to explore potential uses in the power industry, aerospace, agriculture and more." Another researcher said: "Just 10 to 20 square meters of this material on the rooftop could nicely cool down a…house in summer."

工程师们解释了这种新材料的工作原理。他们表示，把这种材料放在某种物体顶部的时候，会发生两件事。首先，通过阳光反射回空中来冷却物体。与此同时，第二件事情发生了——这种材料可以带走物体本身的热量，传递到空气中。一位工程师表示：“这种技术的关键优势是可以七天二十四小时连续不断地工作，不需要电或水。我们非常兴奋，希望探索将这种材料应用在电力，太空，农业甚至更多行业的机会。”另外一位研究人员表示：“夏季，屋顶上覆盖10到20平方米这种材料就可以很好地给房子降温。”