TE||Industrial plants
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导读
‘Super Wood' Could Replace Steel
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听力|精读|翻译|词组
Industrial plants
工业植物原料
英文部分选自经济学人Science and technology版块
Materials science
Industrial plants
材料科学之工业植物原料
How to make buildings, cars and aircraft from materials based on natural fibres
如何利用天然纤维材料建造房屋、制造汽车和飞机
USING carrots to create concrete, turning wood into plastic, or even compressing it into a “super wood” that is as light and strong as titanium might sound like a series of almost Frankensteinish experiments. Yet all three are among the latest examples of employing natural fibres from plants as eco-friendly additives or alternatives to man-made materials.
用胡萝卜制作混凝土，将木头变成塑料，甚至将它压缩成和金属钛一样又轻又坚固的“超级木头”。这些听起来似乎是（有着造物主情结的）疯狂科学家弗兰肯斯坦（Frankenstein）才会做的实验；然而，以上实验都取自现实中利用植物的最新成果——利用天然植物纤维生产环保添加剂或人造材料替代品。
注：2018年是玛丽·雪莱的长篇小说Frankenstein（《弗兰肯斯坦》）出版200周年，参考https://www.sohu.com/a/236807491_740897
Materials-science researchers are finding that plant fibres can add durability and strength to substances already used in the construction of buildings and in goods that range from toys and furniture to cars and aircraft. A big bonus is that, because plants lock up carbon in their structure, using their fibres to make things should mean less carbon dioxide is emitted. The production of concrete alone represents some 5% of man-made global CO2 emissions, and making 1kg of plastic from oil produces 6kg of the greenhouse gas.
材料科学研究人员发现植物纤维可以提高现有建筑材料的耐久度及强度，且应用领域广阔，涵盖从玩具、家具，到汽车和飞机的各类商品。还有一个好处是，由于植物可将二氧化碳封锁在其组织中，所以使用植物纤维制品有助于降低二氧化碳排放量。单单生产混凝土所产生的温室气体就约占全球人为二氧化碳排放总量的百分之五，而利用石油每生产一公斤塑料就能产生六公斤的温室气体。
Start with the carrots. These are being investigated by Mohamed Saafi at Lancaster University, in England. Dr Saafi and his colleagues do not use whole carrots, but rather what they call “nanoplatelets” that have been extracted from carrots discarded by supermarkets or as waste from food-processing factories. Sugar-beet peelings are also a useful source of nanoplatelets. The researchers are working with CelluComp, a British firm that produces such platelets for industrial applications, including as an additive that helps toughen the surface of paint as it dries.
我们先从胡萝卜说起。英国兰卡斯特大学（Lancaster University）的穆罕默德·萨菲（Mohamed Saafi）教授正在研究这些胡萝卜。比起完好无损的胡萝卜，萨菲博士和他的团队更倾向于利用那些被超市或食品加工厂当作垃圾丢弃的胡萝卜，从中提取他们想要的“纳米片”。另外，甜菜皮也是纳米片的重要来源。科研人员正和一家英国的工业纳米片厂商——CelluComp公司展开合作，此公司的产品包括可一种添加剂，可以减轻干燥后油漆表面的开裂情况。
Each platelet is only a few millionths of a metre across. It consists of a sheet of stiff cellulose fibres. Although the fibres are minute, they are strong. By combining platelets with other materials a powerful composite can be produced. Dr Saafi is mixing the platelets into cement, which is made by burning limestone and clay together at high temperature. (The chemical reaction between them releases carbon dioxide from the limestone.) To turn cement into concrete it is mixed with aggregates such as sand, stones and crushed rocks, which act as reinforcement, and with water, which reacts with the chemicals in the cement to form a substance called calcium silicate hydrate. This starts off as a thick gel, but then hardens into a solid matrix that binds the aggregates together.
每个纳米片直径只有数微米（一根头发直径的六十分之一约为一微米），由一层硬质纤维素纤维组成。尽管纤维十分微小，却很坚固。将纳米片与其他材料结合，可以合成强力复合材料。萨菲博士将纳米片混入水泥中，这种水泥是由石灰石和粘土在高温下烧制而成。 （它们之间发生化学反应，从石灰石中释放出二氧化碳）。要将水泥转化为混凝土，还要在水泥中兑入，诸如沙子，石头和碎石等骨料，以提高成形后的强度；再兑入水，水与水泥中的化学物质发生反应形成水合硅酸钙。水合硅酸钙开始时只是一块厚稠的凝胶，到最后可以凝结成一块坚固的固体基质，将骨料牢牢包裹其中，形成混凝土。
注释：
熟词生义 minute: extremely small 极小的；微小的；细微的 同义词tiny;栗子：The kitchen on the boat is minute.小船上的厨房小极了。（摘自《牛津高阶英汉双解词典》）
Carrot soup
胡萝卜汤
By adding vegetable platelets to the mix, Dr Saafi and his colleagues can make concrete stronger. This is useful in itself, but it also permits a reduction in the ratio of cement to aggregates that is required to achieve a given level of strength. Reducing the amount of cement in this way consequently reduces CO2 emissions.
萨菲博士和他的团队在混合物中添加蔬菜纳米片，可以提高混凝土的强度。这本身就很有用，不过，也可以由此降低水泥与骨料的比例，以更低的水泥用量达到给定的强度水平，进而减少二氧化碳的排放量。
The group is still exploring exactly how strong it can make concrete by adding platelets, but initial studies suggest that the impact could be considerable. Just 500 grams of platelets can reduce the amount of cement needed to make a cubic metre of concrete by about 40kg—a saving of 10%. Dr Saafi and his team have now embarked on a two-year study to investigate the process in more detail and to perfect the best mix for use by the construction industry.
该团队仍在探索添加纳米片制造出的混凝土究竟有多坚硬，但初步研究表明纳米片的作用不容小觑。仅仅500克的纳米片就可以将一立方米混凝土所需的水泥用量减少约40公斤，节省了10％。萨菲博士及其团队目前正开展为期两年的研究，以更详细地研究这一过程，从而完善建筑行业使用的最佳配比。
Unlike cement, wood is already a composite material. It is made of cellulose fibres embedded in a matrix of lignin, an organic polymer that serves a number of purposes, including providing woody plants with their rigidity. In May Stora Enso, a Finnish forestry-products company, launched a wood-derived alternative to oil-based plastics. This material, called DuraSense, looks a bit like popcorn. It consists of wood fibres, including lignin, obtained from pulping and other operations. The fibres are mixed with oil-based polymers and other additives, such as colouring agents. The resulting granules can be melted and moulded in the same way as plastic is in factory processes. Adding wood fibres, the company says, can reduce the amount of plastic needed to make goods with plastic parts by 60%.
与水泥不同，木材本身即是一种复合材料。它是由嵌入木质素基质的纤维素纤维制成的，木质素是一种具有多种用途的有机聚合物，替代石油塑料的木制产品为木本植物提供刚性。今年5月，芬兰林业产品公司Stora Enso推出了一种替代石油塑料的木制产品。这种叫做DuraSense的材料看起来有点像爆米花。它由木材纤维组成，包括从制浆和其他工艺中获得的木质素。纤维与油基聚合物和着色剂之类的其他添加剂混合，将产生的颗粒进行熔化、模压，如同在工厂生产塑料一般。该公司称，添加木纤维可以将生产塑料部件所需的塑料降低60%。
Stora Enso has also found a use for pure lignin, which is often a waste product of papermaking, since most paper is made of pulp with the lignin removed. Stora Enso’s engineers have worked out how to use lignin as a substitute for the oil-based resins and adhesives employed in the manufacture of engineered timbers, such as plywoods. Nor are they alone in looking for structural applications for lignin. Along with others they are seeking ways to use it to replace oil-based materials in carbon-fibre composites, which are used to make lightweight parts for cars and aircraft.
绝大部分纸张是由纸浆制成，而被去除的木质素则成了造纸的废弃物。不过，Stora Enso发现了纯木质素的用途。该公司的工程师已经研究出如何将木质素作为石油基树脂和胶粘剂的替代物，这些树脂和胶粘剂用于制造人造木料，如胶合板。该公司也并不是寻找木质素的结构应用的唯一一家。与其他公司一样，在制造汽车和飞机轻质部件的碳纤维复合材料领域，他们也在寻找使用木质素取代该复合材料中油基部分的方法。
By contrast, Hu Liangbing and Li Teng of the University of Maryland are trying to make a better material by removing, rather than adding, lignin. Their aim is to create a “super wood” that is stronger than most metals. Their approach is to treat blocks of wood with sodium hydroxide and sodium sulphate in a chemical process similar to that used to remove lignin from papermaking pulp. The difference is that they remove only enough lignin to make the wooden blocks easier to compress. They do that by squeezing the treated wood at around 100°C, which causes most of the pores and tubelike fibres within the wood to collapse. This increases its density threefold and its strength elevenfold.
相比之下，马里兰（Maryland）大学的胡良兵和李腾（音译）正尝试通过去除而不是添加木质素来制造更好的材料。他们的目标是创造一种比大多数金属都坚硬的“超级木材”。他们的方法是使用氢氧化钠和硫酸钠处理木块，类似于从造纸纸浆中去除木质素的化学过程。不同的是，他们通过去除适量的木质素，以使木块更容易压缩。压缩过程的原理是木材在100°C左右的高温下挤压处理后其内部的大部分气孔和管状纤维会因此碎裂。这种处理把木材的密度提高了三倍，强度提高了十一倍。
That puts super wood on a par with some of the lightweight titanium alloys used in high-strength aerospace components. It is also bulletproof. In one test Dr Hu and Dr Li made a laminated sample by placing five sheets of the stuff on top of one another, each sheet having its fibres aligned at right-angles to those of the sheet below. When shot at, this material splintered but was still able to trap a steel projectile that passed effortlessly through a similarly sized sample of natural wood.
超级木材并不亚于一些用于高强度航空航天部件的轻量级钛合金，而且它也能防弹。在一项测试中，胡博士和李博士将5张超级木板层叠制成一张多层板样板，每一层的纤维走向都与其下层的成直角。朝样板射击时，即便材料发生了开裂也仍可将子弹拦截，相较之下类似大小和厚度天然木板则可被同样的子弹轻松射穿。
注释
on a par with 不逊于…;与…不相上下
The team are now trying to commercialise their process, which Dr Hu thinks will be cheap to scale up. It works on both hardwoods and softwoods, so a range of materials can be created. Dr Hu reckons that, one day, houses, cars, furniture and many other things will be made mainly or partly from densified wood.
目前，该团队正试图将这项工艺流程的商业化。胡博士称，这一工艺流程的推广成本低廉。它既适用于软木也适用于硬木，因此可以创造出一系列新材料。胡博士估计，总有一天，房屋、汽车、家具和其他许多东西的全部或部分部件都会由强化木材制成。
翻译组：
Oria，女，工科博士，经济学人粉丝
Muyi，文产小研，经济学人初段读者
Joel，男，数据分析，科技类外刊爱好者
Xiaofeng, 女，好奇心重的医疗民工，经济学人粉丝
校核组：
Li Xia, 女， HR，经济学人发烧友
Nikolai，男，小硕, science追随者
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观点|评论|思考
本次观点由Frank独家奉献
Frank，男，小硕，经济学人爱好者
当看到这篇文章时，我心中想到的第一件事情就是地震灾害区。钢筋混凝土的房子在地震中会被震得支离破碎，而且会造成巨大的伤害，如果以后房子也能够天然纤维化，那该是多么美好的一件事情啊!
房屋、汽车和飞机纤维化，这些感觉完全是逆天的想法，然而人类攻坚克难，最终实现了这个目标。对于汽车来说，汽车的质量影响汽车的燃油消耗量，如果汽车纤维化，那么将会大大降低汽车的质量，从而汽车行驶更加经济化，又由于纤维的锁碳功能，将更加低环境友好化，那么美丽中国将会不远矣。木材从自然到超级的华丽转身，折射出时代的进步，科学技术的进步。科技没有尽头，创新永不止步，期待着超级木材快速商业化。
不知道此篇文章一出，胡萝卜和甜菜皮“股票”是否会大涨？
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愿景
小组