Train of the future 未來的氫能火車

本集內容

學習要點

有關 “power 動力” 的詞匯

邊看邊答

How far can this train travel on a 15-minute fill-up of hydrogen?

文字稿

It looks like the sort of standard diesel train you’d find on commuter lines and in rural areas that rail electrification hasn’t reached.

這看起來是一輛普通的柴油火車，跟在通勤線路上和鐵路電氣化還未普及的農村地區的火車相比沒什麼兩樣。

But here in Germany, they’ve developed one of the world’s first trains to run on hydrogen fuel cells.

但在德國，研究人員們已經開發瞭世界上第一批使用氫燃料電池驅動的火車。

This is how it works. Hydrogen from an on-board tank goes to a fuel cell. That takes in oxygen from the air. And it creates a chemical reaction to make power.

原理是這樣的：氫從車載燃料箱中被引入燃料電池，這一過程會從空氣中吸收氧氣，從而通過產生的化學反應來發電。

The first trains ran on coal, of course. That was filthy. Diesels still emit gases that harm people and heat the climate, unlike ultra-clean hydrogen.

眾所周知，最早的火車是靠燒煤驅動行駛的。但這種方式很臟。柴油車仍然會排放危害人體健康和讓氣候變暖的廢氣，這與超清潔的氫氣不同。

This is the emission from the exhaust. You can’t smell it. I’m told you can’t taste it. That’s because it’s water, pure water.

這是該火車的尾氣排放物。它沒有氣味。我聽說它也沒有味道。這是因為排放物是水，純水。

Battery-powered trains have been trialled in the UK and elsewhere as a substitute for overhead power lines. So what’s the advantage for hydrogen?

以電池為動力的火車已在英國及其它地域試行，作為架空電纜的替代品。那麼，使用氫的優勢是什麼呢？

Mike Muldoon, Alstom Engineering
We are using hydrogen because it gives us a better range for the train during the day than a battery would. Batteries take longer to charge and give us less energy through the day. So we would have to recharge them several times to provide the range that we can get with hydrogen.

麥克·莫爾頓阿爾斯通公司
“我們使用氫燃料是因為它驅動的火車比靠電池供電的火車在一天內行駛的距離更遠。電池充電需要更長的時間，而且它全天的供能相對較少。所以我們得多次給電池充電才能達到氫燃料火車的行駛距離。”

One 15-minute hydrogen fill-up drives the train for more than 600 miles. What’s more, hydrogen can be produced by surplus wind power.

一次十五分鐘的充氫可驅動火車行駛六百餘英裡。更重要的是，剩餘的風能可以產出氫氣。

Hydrogen trains made here in Germany will go straight into service. The makers expect good business as governments round the world accept the need to cut emissions to protect the climate.

德國制造的氫動力火車將直接投入使用。由於世界各國都接受減少排放以保護氣候的必要性，制造商們期望生意興隆。

詞匯

diesel 柴油

electrification 電氣化

hydrogen 氫氣

coal 煤

battery-powered 電池供能的

你知道嗎？

Shanghai Maglev is the fastest train in the world – with a maximum operating speed of 267.8 mph (431 km/h). Maglev is an abbreviation of ‘magnetic levitation’ – a system where trains run on a magnetic track rather than conventional rails.

上海磁浮列車是世界上行駛速度最快的火車，其最高運行速度可達每小時 267.8 英裡（約431公裡/時）。單詞 “maglev 磁懸浮” 是 “magnetic levitation 磁力懸浮” 的縮寫，指列車在磁力軌道而非傳統鐵路上行駛的系統。