科学家研发出透明木材 或可替代玻璃

你可以想象，木头比玻璃更适合做窗户的材料吗？美国科学家最新研发的“透明木材”不但透明度可以媲美窗户，而且比窗户锁热能力更强、更环保、更耐用、更安全也更轻。

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

科学家研发出了可以替代传统窗玻璃的“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.

这一发明采用了原生于南美和中美的巴尔沙树的木材，据称热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.

该团队把木材泡在氧化剂里，褪去几乎所有可见的颜色，然后注入一种名为聚乙烯醇的合成聚合物，开发出几乎完全透明的一种产品。

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

和传统玻璃不同，这种透明木材可以承受更强烈的冲击，在受损时会弯曲或裂开，而不会粉碎。

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.

这种透明木材是由美国马里兰大学和科罗拉多大学的研究团队开发的，他们的初衷是找到可以替代传统玻璃的更环保的材料。玻璃产品每年都会产生2.5万吨的排放物。

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

除了制造温室气体外，玻璃还会导致能量的流失。

'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.

研究团队在报告中写道：“居民楼的玻璃窗户由于锁热能力不强，能量流失尤其严重，损失的热能占到了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.’

“因此人们极其需要探寻节能窗户材料，以解决供热成本、能源短缺问题，还有与碳排放增加相关的气候变化引发的全球性影响。”

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.

研究团队指出，聚乙烯醇和木材中的纤维素结合，创造出一种高密度的结构，既能更好地锁住热能，也比玻璃更耐用、更轻。

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

研究人员在一份声明中分享道：“事实将证明，改用透明木头还能节省成本。”

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

“透明木头的热效率比玻璃高出五倍，减少了能源成本。”

'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.’

“这种新材料源自碳排放量低的可持续、可再生的资源。而且这种木材也适用于现有的工业处理设备，这使得未来投入生产更容易。”