2020年经济学人 针叶换取水资源(2)

The upshot is that biochar is good at pulling pollutants¹ like lead out of water.

结果生物炭非常善于将铅等污染物从水中抽走。

And once a filter was saturated² with the stuff, it would be a simple matter to replace it,

一旦过滤器被这一物质饱和，替换它将是一件简单的事情，

strip out the accumulated lead using nitric acid, and then burn or dump the exhausted³ biochar.

用硝酸除去积累形成的铅，然后燃烧或倾倒耗尽的生物炭。

Dr Mohan already knew, from previous work, that pine-wood biochar is an effective agent for stripping lead from water.

从之前的研究中，Mohan博士已经知道了松木生物炭是一种有效的铅脱除剂。

But pine wood is a valuable commodity, so he wondered if he could pull off a similar trick using another forest product—

但松木是一种昂贵的商品，所以他想知道是否可以用另一种林产品完成类似的任务——

one that currently has no value, namely pine needles.

一种目前不值钱的木产品，即松针。

To test this idea he and his colleagues went foraging⁴ for needles in the forests of Uttarakhand state, north-east of Delhi.

为了验证这一想法，他和他的同事去了德里东北的北阿坎德邦的森林里寻找针叶。

They returned their spoils to the laboratory, divided the needles into batches⁵,

他们把找到的针叶带回实验室，将针叶分成几批，

and charred⁶ the batches in an electric furnace at temperatures ranging from 350-750°C.

然后分别在电炉中用350到750摄氏度的温度烧焦。

Experiments suggested that material charred at 550°C extracted lead most efficiently⁷,

试验表明烤焦到550摄氏度的材料能最有效地提取铅，

and examination showed that this material had the largest internal surface area per gram

并且检验表明，这一材料每克中的内表面面积最大

(determined⁸ by a technique that measures a substance's ability to adsorb gases),

（由一种测量物质吸附气体能力的技术来测定的），

and the optimal⁹ level of carbonisation needed to preserve the metal-capturing organic compounds.

还有保存金属捕获有机化合物所需的最佳碳化水平。

The best temperature for the process, they discovered, was 35°C—just under body heat, and also ambient, at least in the summer,

他们发现，这一过程的最佳温度是35摄氏度——刚好低于体温，和常温，至少在夏天

in the wide plain south of the Himalaya through which the Ganges, one of the most polluted rivers on the planet, flows.

在喜马拉雅南部的广阔平原上是如此，且地球上污染最严重的河流之一——恒河流经这里。

Whether these laboratory observations can be turned into a practical process is hard to say.

这些实验室观察结果是否能够转为实践过程还很难说。

Special filtration-beds would have to be built in water-treatment plants—

水处理工厂中必须有特殊的过滤层——

facilities of which India is in any case woefully short. But it is not short of material to make the biochar.

而印度非常缺乏这些设施。但印度并不缺乏制造这种生物炭的材料。

An average hectare of Himalayan conifer forest produces over six tonnes of needles a year.

喜马拉雅针叶林平均一公顷每年生产6吨以上的针叶。

The process of charring would reduce this to two tonnes, but that is still a fair yield.

烤焦过程将使这个量减少至两吨，但这仍是一个合理的产出。

How much of this fallen foliage¹⁰ would need to be removed to reduce the fire risk and gain the other potential benefits,

需要处理多少落叶才能降低风险，并获得其他潜在益处，

and what further effects this might have on the local ecology, remain to be determined.

这一做法会进一步对当地生态产生怎样的影响，这些仍有待确定。

But Dr Mohan's work does show how the cost of this removal might be turned into a benefit enjoyed by all.

但Mohan博士的研究确实表明，清除这些针叶的成本可能会如何转变成所有人都能享受的利益。

1 pollutants   

污染物质（尤指工业废物）( pollutant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Pollutants are constantly being released into the atmosphere. 污染物质正在不断地被排放到大气中去。
• The 1987 Amendments limit 301(g) discharges to a few well-studied nonconventional pollutants. 1987年的修正案把第301条（g）的普通排放限制施加在一些认真研究过的几种非常规污染物上。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

2 saturated   

a.饱和的，充满的

参考例句：

• The continuous rain had saturated the soil. 连绵不断的雨把土地淋了个透。
• a saturated solution of sodium chloride 氯化钠饱和溶液

3 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

4 foraging   

v.搜寻（食物），尤指动物觅（食）( forage的现在分词 )；（尤指用手）搜寻（东西）

参考例句：

• They eke out a precarious existence foraging in rubbish dumps. 他们靠在垃圾场捡垃圾维持着朝不保夕的生活。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The campers went foraging for wood to make a fire. 露营者去搜寻柴木点火。 来自辞典例句

5 batches   

一批( batch的名词复数 )； 一炉； （食物、药物等的）一批生产的量； 成批作业

参考例句：

• The prisoners were led out in batches and shot. 这些囚犯被分批带出去枪毙了。
• The stainless drum may be used to make larger batches. 不锈钢转数设备可用来加工批量大的料。

6 charred   

v.把…烧成炭( char的过去式)；烧焦

参考例句：

• the charred remains of a burnt-out car 被烧焦的轿车残骸
• The intensity of the explosion is recorded on the charred tree trunks. 那些烧焦的树干表明爆炸的强烈。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 efficiently   

adv.高效率地，有能力地

参考例句：

• The worker oils the machine to operate it more efficiently.工人给机器上油以使机器运转更有效。
• Local authorities have to learn to allocate resources efficiently.地方政府必须学会有效地分配资源。

8 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

9 optimal   

adj.最适宜的；最理想的；最令人满意的

参考例句：

• What is the optimal mix of private and public property rights in natural resources?私人和国家的自然资源产权的最适宜的组合是什么？
• Optimal path planning is a key link for the sailing contest.帆船最优行驶路径规划是帆船比赛取胜的关键环节。

10 foliage   

n.叶子，树叶，簇叶

参考例句：

• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage.小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。
• Dark foliage clothes the hills.浓密的树叶覆盖着群山。