The solution to our energy problems is … a toaster - Rachel Yang

翻译人员: 紫瑜 梁 校对人员: Marie Li

In 1919, American mechanic Charles Strite

1919年，美国机械师 查尔斯·斯特雷特

invented something humanity had desired for millennia:

实现了人类追寻千年的梦想——

the automatic toaster.

自动烤面包机。

Various cultures had long toasted their bread over fire

纵观历史，从篝火到壁炉，

in a process that required constant attention and produced uneven results.

烘烤面包始终需要人工 翻面，而且还容易受热不均。

But in 1905, toast technology evolved with the invention

这一困局在1905年迎来转机：

of a new nickel and chromium composite.

他们发明了一种由 镍和铬组成的新型合金，

When an electric current ran through these filaments,

让电流通过这些金属灯丝时

they would overflow with energy and radiate heat.

能产生稳定热能，并释放出来。

And since the flexible metal could be coiled to match the dimensions

其可塑性更使发热元件 能与标准的面包片完美贴合，

of a standard slice of bread, this heat could be dispersed evenly—

使面包片受热均匀。

perfectly toasting an entire slice all at once.

从而能完美地一次性烘焙整片面包。

The only problem left was overcooking,

然而还存在一个问题——过度烘烤。

which Strite’s model addressed with an automatic timer

所以，斯特雷特又设计了 自动计时装置，实现了质的突破。

that simultaneously shut off the heating element

这个装置在于加热完成后， 它不仅能够自动切断电路，

and launched finished toast skyward.

还会将金黄的吐司精准弹出。

Strite’s appliance would’ve been the best invention since sliced bread,

对于当时来说，这个 装置就是最好的发明。

except that sliced bread was actually invented later to accommodate toasters.

直到我们发现——它还 能与另一种用途完美结合！

But today, there's a new contender for the world's most important toaster.

但现在， 一种新的烤面包机挑战了它的地位

And instead of heating up bread, this machine uses similar technology

它们都用了相同的原理， 不过不是用来烤面包，

to toast bricks, rocks, and molten salt

而是用来加热砖块、岩石和熔盐，

to solve one of Earth’s most pressing concerns.

来解决如今世界上具有挑战的问题之一。

Every year, industrial manufacturers spend a huge amount of energy

全球的工业制造商每年都会消耗大量能源

generating heat to make everyday materials and objects.

来制造基本材料和日常生活用品，

These heat-dependent manufacturing processes for things

它们非常依赖于热能，

like cement, steel, paper, and food

比如说：水泥、钢铁、纸张，甚至食品，

currently comprise roughly 20% of our annual global energy consumption.

就已经消耗了全球 能源总量的大概 20 % ，

And since most companies use fossil fuels to reach these high temperatures,

更严峻的是，大多数企业都依赖化石燃料 来达到 300 摄氏度以上的高温，

industrial heat also accounts for 20% of our annual global carbon pollution.

而工业热能也占了年度 全球碳排放的 20 ％。

Thankfully, this is where our giant toaster comes in.

幸运的是，我们发现 烤面包机能缓解这个情况。

This century-old technology is much more efficient than fossil fuels

经过了百年历史的考验， 我们发现它比化学燃料能

at generating heat.

更高效，更好地储存热量。

Meanwhile, the bricks, rocks, and molten salt we mentioned earlier

而我们前面铺垫的 “砖块、岩石 和熔盐”这些材料

are cheap, abundant, and excellent at storing heat—

它们不仅很便宜，很容易 得到，更重要的是极具蓄热能力。

if they’re heated evenly.

那么如果能够使它们均匀 加热，问题就迎刃而解了，

Which, of course, is the toaster’s specialty.

而这，恰好是烤面包机最擅长的事。

So by toasting these toasting these materials,

烤面包机通过加热这些材料，

we can store heat as energy in what’s known as a heat battery.

可以将热量储存到“热能电池”里

To see this in action, let’s look at a brick heat battery.

想知道能不能成功？我们 接着深入了解它工作的原理，

These large bricks have been threaded with heating elements

首先将加热元件嵌入到这些大型砖块中，

like you’d find in a toaster

也就是烤面包机中的金属灯丝，

and molded with interlocking blocks that leave channels for air and heat.

然后让砖块紧密连接，并且给它们留出一 条“通道”，让热量和空气在其中流动，

Then they get placed inside a chamber roughly 12 by 12 meters large.

再把它们放进一个大概 12 米x 12 米的密封室里，

When turned on, the metal in the bricks bakes them to temperatures

当打开电源，砖块中的金属 加热元件会将它们加热到高达

as high as 1,800°C.

1800 °C的温度。

And since the entire giant toaster is encased in insulating steel,

又因为整个外部系统都包裹了隔热钢层，

less than 1% of the heat escapes each day,

所以每天流失的热量还不到 1 %，

enabling the brick to store hundreds of megawatts of energy—

更妙的是，这使砖块 能够储存数百兆瓦的能源——

enough to power hundreds of homes for a month.

足以为数百个家庭供电一个月。

When it’s time to use this energy,

而当我们需要它释放这些热能的时候，

air or other gases are funneled up through the channels,

空气或气体会被导入到通道中，

raising the gas’ temperature up to 1,700°C.

温度可高达 1700 °C。

Then the scalding air can be used to heat a space, turn water into steam,

这些超高温气体可用于 暖气装置、制造工业蒸气，

or run any other heat-dependent manufacturing systems.

或者为连续生产系统提供稳定热能。

These incredibly high temperatures are the true innovation of heat batteries.

正是因为这些令人难以置信的 高温，才推动了热能电池的创新。

Many industrial heating processes require temperatures over 200°C,

许多工业加热的过程 需要超过 200 °C，

and historically it hasn’t been technically practical

在过去，从技术和经济方面上来看，

or financially feasible

想达到这样的温度几乎不可能，

to reach those temperatures without burning fossil fuels.

所以只能依靠燃烧化石燃料来实现，

But heat batteries can slowly store energy over a long period of time

而热能电池可以在 长时间内慢慢地储存能量，

and then let it all out in short spurts of extreme heat.

然后在需要时将极高的 温度在短时间内释放出来，

And this slow storage approach also helps solve another problem.

还解决了“可再生能源存储”的难题。

While wind and solar are currently the cheapest form of electricity on Earth,

目前，世界上最廉价的 电力来源是风能和太阳能，

these technologies only generate electricity when the wind is blowing

但它们局限于天气，只能在风吹

and sun is shining.

日晒时发电。

But by storing that energy in heat batteries,

而热能电池储存下的能量

we can use it later regardless of the weather.

让我们能够随时随地 使用，不受天气的影响。

When all these pieces are in place,

当这些技术都成熟后，

heat batteries are one of our cheapest and most sustainable battery technologies.

热能电池将会成为未来 最经济、最可持续的电池技术之一。

For generating industrial heat,

不仅如此，在工业供热方面

they’re more than twice as efficient as fossil fuel combustion,

它们的效率是化石燃料燃烧的两倍多，

and roughly half the price of buying power from the grid.

成本只有购买电网电力的一半。

And best of all, this technology is ready to go today.

最棒的是这项技术已蓄势待发，

It’s just a matter of incentivizing companies to invest

我们只需拉动企业投资，

in swapping their old technology for the toasters of the future.

用未来的“烤面包机” 来替换被淘汰的技术。