VOA标准英语2011--Solar Products Becoming More Affordable

Solar Products Becoming More Affordable¹ for Developing World

It is the cleanest, most abundant energy source. But solar power faces the challenge of affordability² and efficiency, especially if such systems are to be widely installed in the developing world.
Progress is being made. Scores of Chinese companies are touting³ their latest solar electronic components⁴ and products at an international trade fair in Hong Kong.
Most of the products on display here at the Hong Kong Electronics Fair are practically unusable for the 1.6 billion people, a quarter of the world's population, living without electricity.
In sunny Africa and South Asia, which have the lowest electrification⁵ rates, cheaper and more efficient solar cells are in demand.
And innovation is occurring, says Zhong Xiao Jun, whose company in Guangzhou, China makes solar panels, chargers and lighting⁶ systems.
"To improve competitiveness of our products, we are working on increasing battery performance," he says. "We are using some printed circuit board to cut energy losses. Secondly⁷, we are increasing the electrical conversion⁸ efficiency of solar panels. This is possible because we are utilizing⁹ special new materials and techniques for our panel production line."
One of the challenges of solar power, of course, is what do you do when the sun is not shining?
There are innovative¹⁰ solutions, such as this one: a hybrid¹¹ system that relies not only on solar, but also wind power, for street lamps. It is already operational in Shenzhen, China and Germany.
In North America and Europe, more expensive crystalline silicon¹² technology is preferred for high power, limited space installations.
In the developing world, Topray Solar's Frank Lin says cheaper thin film technology is favored.
"That means they can pay for the same power with less money. Of course, the disadvantage will be a bigger size. But bigger size is not an issue for the African, for the developing countries because they have that kind of space. And usually what they use are smaller applications," says Lin.
More affordable products for daily use in places off the grid¹³ are coming to market. Solar flashlights on display here are being sold on a wholesale¹⁴ basis for as little as 35 cents each.
A detachable LED shines up to 20 hours when fully¹⁵ charged and retails¹⁶ for under $100.
Solar power, globally, is reaching new heights every year. Industry officials say installations reached a record high of more than 18 gigawatts last year.
But the top market remains¹⁷ Europe. It is estimated only one percent of the world's solar panels are in the developing world.

1 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。

2 affordability   

可购性

参考例句：

• Performance-Based Logistics Affordability: Can We Afford Categorical Conversion to Performance-Based Acquisition? 基于性能的后期的可承受性：能否担负得起向基于性能的采办的无条件的转变？
• There would be no crisis of affordability, as't for food or clothing. 就想食物与服装一样，因为供给没有危机。

3 touting   

v.兜售( tout的现在分词 )；招揽；侦查；探听赛马情报

参考例句：

• He's been touting his novel around publishers for years. 他几年来一直到处找出版商兜售自己的小说。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Technology industry leaders are touting cars as a hot area for growth. 科技产业领袖吹捧为增长热点地区的汽车。 来自互联网

4 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。

5 electrification   

n.充电，电气化；起电；电化；带电

参考例句：

• Electrification of the countryside--yes, that, too, is impressive. 是的。农村电气化也是了不起的事。 来自演讲部分
• After electrification, it will readily stick to a wall or a ceiling. 起电后，它立即吸附到墙壁上或天花板上。 来自辞典例句

6 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

7 secondly   

adv.第二，其次

参考例句：

• Secondly,use your own head and present your point of view.第二，动脑筋提出自己的见解。
• Secondly it is necessary to define the applied load.其次，需要确定所作用的载荷。

8 conversion   

n.转化，转换，转变

参考例句：

• He underwent quite a conversion.他彻底变了。
• Waste conversion is a part of the production process.废物处理是生产过程的一个组成部分。

9 utilizing   

v.利用，使用( utilize的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Utilizing an assembler to produce a machine-language program. 用汇编程序产生机器语言的过程。 来自辞典例句
• The study and use of devices utilizing properties of materials near absolute zero in temperature. 对材料在接近绝对零度时的特性进行研究和利用的学科。 来自辞典例句

10 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。

11 hybrid   

n.(动，植）杂种，混合物

参考例句：

• That is a hybrid perpetual rose.那是一株杂交的四季开花的蔷薇。
• The hybrid was tall,handsome,and intelligent.那混血儿高大、英俊、又聪明。

12 silicon   

n.硅(旧名矽)

参考例句：

• This company pioneered the use of silicon chip.这家公司开创了使用硅片的方法。
• A chip is a piece of silicon about the size of a postage stamp.芯片就是一枚邮票大小的硅片。

13 grid   

n.高压输电线路网；地图坐标方格；格栅

参考例句：

• In this application,the carrier is used to encapsulate the grid.在这种情况下，要用载体把格栅密封起来。
• Modern gauges consist of metal foil in the form of a grid.现代应变仪则由网格形式的金属片组成。

14 wholesale   

n.批发；adv.以批发方式；vt.批发，成批出售

参考例句：

• The retail dealer buys at wholesale and sells at retail.零售商批发购进货物，以零售价卖出。
• Such shoes usually wholesale for much less.这种鞋批发出售通常要便宜得多。

15 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

16 retails   

n.零售( retail的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This book retails at 10 dollars overseas. 这本书的海外零售价是十美元。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This radio retails for ＄ 14.95. 这种收音机的零售价是14美元95美分。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

17 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。