你可以想象，木頭比玻璃更適合做窗戶的材料嗎？美國科學(xué)家最新研發(fā)的“透明木材”不但透明度可以媲美窗戶，而且比窗戶鎖熱能力更強(qiáng)、更環(huán)保、更耐用、更安全也更輕。

Scientists have designed ‘transparent wood’ that could replace conventional glass in windows.

科學(xué)家研發(fā)出了可以替代傳統(tǒng)窗玻璃的“透明木材”。

The innovation was developed using wood from the balsa tree, which is native to South and Central America, and claims to be five times more thermally efficient than glass.

這一發(fā)明采用了原生于南美和中美的巴爾沙樹的木材，據(jù)稱熱效率比玻璃高出五倍。

The team treated balsa wood in an oxidizing bath that bleaches it of nearly all visibility and then penetrated it with a synthetic polymer called polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) - creating a product that is virtually transparent.

該團(tuán)隊(duì)把木材泡在氧化劑里，褪去幾乎所有可見的顏色，然后注入一種名為聚乙烯醇的合成聚合物，開發(fā)出幾乎完全透明的一種產(chǎn)品。

Unlike traditional glass, the transparent wood can withstand much stronger impacts and will bend or splinter when damaged, instead of shattering.

和傳統(tǒng)玻璃不同，這種透明木材可以承受更強(qiáng)烈的沖擊，在受損時(shí)會(huì)彎曲或裂開，而不會(huì)粉碎。

The transparent wood was created by teams at the University of Maryland and University of Colorado, which set out to find a greener alternative to conventional glass – a production that creates 25,000 tons in emissions each year.

這種透明木材是由美國馬里蘭大學(xué)和科羅拉多大學(xué)的研究團(tuán)隊(duì)開發(fā)的，他們的初衷是找到可以替代傳統(tǒng)玻璃的更環(huán)保的材料。玻璃產(chǎn)品每年都會(huì)產(chǎn)生2.5萬噸的排放物。

Along with contributing to greenhouse gases, glass contributes to a loss of energy.

除了制造溫室氣體外，玻璃還會(huì)導(dǎo)致能量的流失。

'Residential building windows in particular account for 10–25% of the heat loss due to their poor thermal management capability,’ the team wrote in the study.

研究團(tuán)隊(duì)在報(bào)告中寫道：“居民樓的玻璃窗戶由于鎖熱能力不強(qiáng)，能量流失尤其嚴(yán)重，損失的熱能占到了10%到25%。”

'Exploring energy efficient window materials is thus highly desirable to address heating costs, energy shortages, and the global impact of climate change associated with increased carbon emissions.’

“因此人們極其需要探尋節(jié)能窗戶材料，以解決供熱成本、能源短缺問題，還有與碳排放增加相關(guān)的氣候變化引發(fā)的全球性影響?！?/p>

The team notes that the bonding between PVA and cellulose in the wood, creates a tightly packed structure that allows for more thermal protection and makes it more durable and lighter than glass.

研究團(tuán)隊(duì)指出，聚乙烯醇和木材中的纖維素結(jié)合，創(chuàng)造出一種高密度的結(jié)構(gòu)，既能更好地鎖住熱能，也比玻璃更耐用、更輕。

'Switching to transparent wood could prove to be cost efficient as well,’ researchers shared in a statement.

研究人員在一份聲明中分享道：“事實(shí)將證明，改用透明木頭還能節(jié)省成本。”

'It is approximately five times more thermally efficient than glass, cutting energy costs.’

“透明木頭的熱效率比玻璃高出五倍，減少了能源成本?！?/p>

'It is made from a sustainable, renewable resource with low carbon emissions. It’s also compatible with existing industrial processing equipment, making the transition into manufacturing an easy prospect.’

“這種新材料源自碳排放量低的可持續(xù)、可再生的資源。而且這種木材也適用于現(xiàn)有的工業(yè)處理設(shè)備，這使得未來投入生產(chǎn)更容易?！?/p>

來源：每日郵報(bào)

翻譯&編輯：丹妮