
For companies around the world and across industries, sustainability(可持续发展) has rapidly gone from a nice-to-have to a must-have. Some famous companies have announced ambitious plans to remove single-use plastics, reduce carbon release and otherwise shrink their environmental footprint in various ways.
Newlight Technologies hopes to speed up that process. The company has spent more than a decade developing a material called AirCarbon, which functions exactly like plastic but is completely biodegradable(可生物降解的). Newlight developed the material using microorganisms found in the ocean that feed on methane and carbon dioxide-two-greenhouse gases among the biggest contributors to climate change. The organisms turn those gases into a natural polymer(聚合物) that can be shaped just like plastic.
“We call that AirCarbon because it's air and carbon that can mix with and become part of water,” CEO Mark Herrema said. “We have this pure white powder that we can then melt and form in all kinds of parts and pieces.” The company's new production facility is filled with large saltwater tanks that recreate ocean conditions, allowing the organisms to make the polymer from which AirCarbon can be obtained.
Newlight recently began rolling out its first set of products made from the material, launching two-brands. Its foodware brand, Restore, sells biodegradable straws, knives, forks and spoons, while its fashion brand Covalent sells handbags, wallets and sunglasses. And because the process of developing AirCarbon uses gases from the atmosphere, the products are carbon negative, meaning they take out more pollutants than they produce. Newlight has received carbon negative certifications from several organizations for its products.
Newlight’s current products are costlier than some traditional products available on the market, since the company has just one facility, which makes it hard to keep prices down. At present, Newlight’s AirCarbon products can remove 100 million pounds of carbon dioxide per year. But Herrema's goal is to build more facilities as quickly as possible and eventually increase that number to 20 billion pounds, which he says is how much plastic ends up in the ocean each year.
对于世界各地和各行各业的公司来说,可持续发展已经迅速从“可有可无”变成了“必须具备”。一些著名公司已经宣布了雄心勃勃的计划,以消除一次性塑料,减少碳排放,并以各种方式缩小其环境足迹。
新光科技公司希望加快这一进程。该公司花了十多年的时间开发一种名为“空气碳”的材料,它的功能与塑料完全相似,但它是完全可生物降解的。Newlight利用在海洋中发现的微生物开发了这种材料,这些微生物以甲烷和二氧化碳为食,这两种温室气体是导致气候变化的最大因素。这些生物将这些气体转化为一种天然聚合物,可以像塑料一样成形。
首席执行官马克·赫雷马说:“我们称之为‘空气碳’,因为它是空气和碳,可以与水混合并成为水的一部分。”“我们有这种纯白色粉末,然后我们可以融化并形成各种零件。”该公司的新生产设施充满了大型盐水罐,可以重现海洋环境,使生物能够制造聚合物,从中可以获得空气碳。
Newlight最近开始推出第一套由这种材料制成的产品,推出了两个品牌。其食品品牌Restore销售可生物降解的吸管、刀叉和勺子,其时尚品牌Covalent销售手袋、钱包和太阳镜。由于开发空气碳的过程使用了大气中的气体,所以产品是负碳的,这意味着它们吸收的污染物比产生的要多。Newlight的产品已经获得了多个组织的碳负认证。
Newlight目前的产品比市场上的一些传统产品更贵,因为该公司只有一个工厂,这使得它很难压低价格。目前,新光公司的AirCarbon产品每年可以去除1亿磅二氧化碳。但Herrema的目标是尽快建造更多的设施,最终将这个数字增加到200亿磅,他说这就是每年流入海洋的塑料量。
句子成分分析:
Some famous companies have announced ambitious plans toremove singleuse plastics, reduce carbon release and
otherwise shrink their environmental footprint [in various ways].
句子语法结构详解:
* announced 为谓语,采用现在完成时。
* to remove 为不定式,作后置定语。
* reduce 为不带 to 的不定式。
* shrink 为不带 to 的不定式。
* their 为形容词型物主代词。have 为助动词。
句子相关词汇解释:
Vocabulary:
some [sʌm] | a. | 1) 一些 2) 某一, 某个 |
famous ['feimәs] | a. | 著名的,出名的 |
company ['kʌmpәni] | n. | 1) 公司 2) 陪伴 |
announce [ә'nauns] | vt. | 1) 宣布,宣告(决定、计划等) 2) 通知 |
ambitious [æm'biʃәs] | a. | 1) 有野心的,有雄心的 2) 费力的,耗资的,耗时的 |
plan [plæn] | n. | 1) 计划,打算 2) (详细)规划,方案,精心安排 |
remove [ri'mu:v] | vt. | 1) 移开,拿开,去掉,从……机构开除 2) 脱去(衣服等),摘下 |
single-use | a. | 供一次使用的 |
plastic ['plæstik] | n. | 1) 塑料 2) (plastics)塑料学 |
reduce [ri'dju:s] | vt. | 1) 减少,缩小(尺寸、数量、价格等) 2) 使蒸发 |
carbon ['kɑ:bәn] | n. | 1) 碳 2) 复写本 |
release [ri'li:s] | n. | 1) 公开,发行,发布 2) 释放,获释 |
and [ænd] | conj. | 1) 和, 与, 同, 并 2) 然后,接着 |
otherwise ['ʌðәwaiz] | ad. | 否则, 不同地, 别的方式 |
shrink [ʃriŋk] | vt. | 1) 使缩水,收缩,缩小,皱缩 2) 使缩小,收缩,减少 |
environmental [in,vaiәrәn'mentәl] | a. | 环境的 |
footprint ['futprint] | n. | 1) 脚印;足迹 2) (某物所占的)空间量,面积 |
various ['vєәriәs] | a. | 1) 各种不同的,各种各样的 2) 具有多种特征的,多姿多彩的 |
way [wei] | n. | 1) 方法,方式,途径 2) 路, 道路,路线 |
句子成分分析:
"We have this pure white powder (that we can then melt and form [in all kinds (of parts)] and pieces)."
句子语法结构详解:
* have 为谓语,采用一般现在时。
* that 为关系代词,引导定语从句。
* melt 为谓语。
* form 为谓语。
* pieces 为谓语,采用一般现在时。动词采用第三人称单数形式。
* can 为情态动词。we 为人称代词主格。
句子相关词汇解释:
Phrase:
all kinds of... | 各种... |
Vocabulary:
have [hæv] | vt. | 1) 有,持有 2) 吃,喝, 抽(烟) 3) 患病,出现(某症状) |
this [θis] | a. | 1) 这(个) 2) 今,本 |
pure [pjuә] | a. | 1) 纯的,纯净的,纯粹的 2) 干净的,不含有害物质的 |
white [hwait] | a. | 1) 白的,白色的 2) 白种人的,白人的 |
powder ['paudә] | n. | 1) 粉末,细面 2) 扑面粉,美容粉 |
then [ðen] | ad. | 1) 然后 2) 那时,这时, 当时 |
melt [melt] | vt. | 1) 使熔化,使融化 2) 使软化,变得温柔 |
and [ænd] | conj. | 1) 和, 与, 同, 并 2) 然后,接着 |
form [fɔ:m] | vt. | 1) 形成 2) 成立,建立,创立 |
part [pɑ:t] | n. | 1) 部分 2) 部件,零件 3) 角色,台词 |
piece [pi:s] | vt. | (piece sth together) 拼凑,拼合, 组合 |
句子成分分析:
Newlight has received carbon negative certifications from several organizations [for its products].
句子语法结构详解:
* received 为谓语,采用现在完成时。
* its 为物主代词。has 为助动词。
句子相关词汇解释:
Vocabulary:
receive [ri'si:v] | vt. | 1) 拿到,接到,收到 2) 体验,受到(某种待遇或伤害) |
carbon ['kɑ:bәn] | n. | 1) 碳 2) 复写本 |
negative ['negәtiv] | n. | 1) 否定,否定词,拒绝 2) 底片,负片 |
certification [,sә:tifi'keiʃәn] | n. | 1) 证明,鉴定 2) 出具课程结业证书 |
several ['sevәrәl] | a. | 1) 几个 2) 各自的,分别的 |
organization [,ɔ:gәnai'zeiʃәn] | n. | 1) 组织,团体,机构 2) 组织工作,筹备工作 |
its [its] | a. | 它的 |
product ['prɔdʌkt] | n. | 1) 产品,制品 2) (自然、化学或工业过程的)产物,生成物,产品 |
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