研究生学术英语基于电池的纳米技术.docx

Task 1Nanotechnology-Based BatteriesMario Pagliaro【1】When American troops entered Munich in March 1945, one of the ?rst companies to be seized was Varta, the large battery manufacturer. The company was the manufacturer of batteries and accumulators for the Wehr-macht submarines and for the Luftwaffe during World War II. Itis batteries that enable storage and thus the portability of electric power; and since electricity is the most useful form of energy available to power technology devices, be they radios or noise-less submarine engines, batteries remain a key technology in virtually every industry. 【2】The obsolescence of battery technology can be immediately grasped by the short duration of the batteries of your Blackberry or of your iPhone, which makes users complain on web forums and blogs. On a larger scale, among the main culprits in the downfall of the electric car in the USA was the limited range (60–70 miles) and reliability of the first electric car made available for lease in Southern California in 1991. However, put simply, the combustion of hydrocarbon fuels in the internal combustion engine (ICE) for land, sea, and air transportation is the largest source of global warming pollution in the world –responsible for 30% of our annual CO2 emissions. Therefore, having to establish priorities in our efforts to stop global warming, the replacement the 150-year-old ICE with new, zero carbon emission vehicles is the single most important aim. This means that we need to develop efficient and affordable electric vehicles ultimately powered by the sun,either through photovoltaicelectricity torecharge batteries or fueled by solar-generated hydrogen.【3】A new type of lithium-ion battery, which features an extremely long lifespan, may solve the problem. However, before entering the technology discussion we should lose a little of the naiveté that features in the arguments of too many scientists. The 150-year-old ICE is the basic infrastructure through which oil companie