【英语时差8,16】太阳能也能用于制造液体燃料？ -下（在线收听）

Instead of burning coal, oil, or biomass to heat things up, scientists have found that it’s possible to use solar energy. For example, some experimental facilities use thousands of mirrors to reflect sunlight onto a large plate on a tower, heating it to around 2100 degrees Fahrenheit. The heat is used to jumpstart a reaction that turns a mixture of water and woodchips into gas. The gas can then be refined into liquid gasoline and diesel fuels. Making liquid fuel the old fashioned way, from oil, has been cheaper than using solar power. But it’s also dirtier. And because oil prices are highly volatile and oil is a limited resource, gas prices can shoot up at a moment’s notice. So in many ways, making liquid fuel using solar power is an attractive option. One day, it may be a practical option, too.