经济学人: 回收:塑料公路 (2)

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　　Paths, car parks and railway platforms could follow. Eventually, sections for use as actual roads are planned. 路径、停车场以及铁路站台可都如此。最终，将节段投入真正公路上的计划拟定。

　　These could contain sensors² for traffic monitoring. 这些可以容纳用于交通监测的传感器。

　　In time, the circuits in the plastic roads might extend to assisting autonomous³ vehicles and recharging electric cars wirelessly⁴. 塑料公路中的电路或许可以扩展用于辅助自动车辆以及为无线电动车充电。

　　Prefabricated plastic roads should last two-to-three times longer than conventional roads and cost less, the companies claim, 公司宣称预先建造的塑料公路的使用年限应是传统公路的两到三倍且成本更低

　　mainly because construction times would be reduced by almost two-thirds. 这主要是因为塑料公路的施工期缩减了将近三分之二。

　　Anti-slip surfaces could be incorporated, too, including crushed stones which are traditionally used to dress road surfaces. 塑料公路还能装上防滑表层，包括传统用于铺设路面的碎石子。

　　The sections, when replaced, can also be recycled. 被替换下来的节段也可被回收。

　　But engineers will be watching to see how the track stands up to wear and tear and if the hollow structure causes resonance⁵, 但是工程师将检测路径如何抵抗磨损以及空心的结构是否会引起共振

　　which would make such a road unduly⁶ noisy. 从而造成公路噪音。

　　An alternative method of using recycled plastic is to mix the material into hot bitumen⁷ when making asphalt. 使用回收塑料的另一种替代方法是在制作柏油时，将材料混合进热沥青中。

　　A road is about to be built this way on the campus of the University of California, San Diego, 用这种方法制造的公路将建在圣地亚哥加利福尼亚大学校园中，

　　to test a number of specialist roadmaking plastics developed by MacRebur, a British firm. 以检测英国公司MacRebur研发的若干特制公路制造塑料。

　　Each mix is produced from plastic that is not easily or cheaply recycled and so typically ends up in landfill, 每种混合都源自塑料，这些塑料无法被轻易回收或是回收成本较高，因此，通常都被丢弃在垃圾填埋场中，

　　says Toby McCartney, who founded the firm in 2015 with a group of colleagues. 托比·麦卡特尼说道，他和一些同事在2015年成立了这家公司。

　　MacRebur cleans and sorts the plastic and then grinds the waste into flakes⁸ or pellets. MacRebur公司清理并将塑料分类，然后将废物碾成片状或球状。

　　The plan is for this part of the process to be carried out in the localities where roads are being laid or repaired, 该计划将在那些需要铺设公路或需要修补公路的地方实施

　　so that local waste is used to produce local roads. Each mix can contain 20 or so different polymers for specific surfaces. 因此，当地的废品被用于制造当地的公路。每种混合可包含20多种不同比表面聚合物。

　　One mix, for instance, might be suitable for a bus lane that carries heavy loads. 例如，其中一种混合可能适用于承载重荷的公交专用道。

　　Another would provide some flexibility⁹ in an area of turning traffic, such as a roundabout, 另一种混合可以为转向交通区域，比如环状交叉路口，提供一些弹性，

　　where lateral¹⁰ forces from vehicles' wheels can stretch the surface causing it to tear. Extremes of heat and cold can also be adjusted for. 在环状交叉路口来自于车辆轮胎的侧向力使公路表面延展造成磨损。还可以调整到极度冷热。

　　And because the addition of plastic helps to seal up small holes, 由于塑料的附加属性帮助密封住小孔，

　　which allow water to get below the surface of a road and cause it to break up, the modified asphalt can help to prevent potholes¹¹. （水会顺着这些小孔流入公路表面之下造成公路断裂），因此经过改进的柏油可以帮助防止坑槽。

　　The company's plastic mixes have already been used in roads, carparks and airport runways in various parts of the world. 该公司的塑料混合物已被用于全球各地区的公路、停车场以及飞机场。

　　One of the oldest projects is a stretch of road in Cumbria, in north-west Britain, which is extensively used by heavy lorries. 最老旧的项目之一就是英国西北部坎布里亚的一段公路，这种方法广泛用于大型卡车。

　　This used to need resurfacing every six months or so, but with the addition of plastic it is still going strong after two years, says Mr McCartney. 过去每隔六个月就需要重铺一次，但是有了塑料的附加属性，使用两年后，公路仍然耐用，麦卡特尼说道。

　　When resurfacing is needed, the material can be recycled again. 当需要重修时，材料可被再次回收。

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