改变世界的17种物质_BEC初级作文_BEC初级-查字典英语网

改变世界的17种物质

橡胶C5H8

从植物汁液中收集天然橡胶已经有几个世纪的历史。不过，直到1839年之后橡胶才得到广泛应用，当时查尔斯·固特异发现了一种让它变得更强、更灵活，更持久耐用的方法。1931年，美国化学家埃尔莫·鲍尔顿发明了合成橡胶，仅2005年，全球就生产了两千一百万吨橡胶，其中百分之五十六被用于制造轮胎和各种软管。其他应用还包括手套、橡皮筋和气球。甚至一些火箭和导弹也由以橡胶为基础的合成燃料驱动。

SILICON DIOXIDE — SiO2

As the principal component in glass, silicon dioxide was used as early as 5000 BC. All the panes of glass in the world today cover about four billion square meters. Glass has also been essential for test tubes, telescopes, microscopes, mirrors and camera lenses.

二氧化硅SiO2

作为玻璃的主要成分，二氧化硅早在公元前5000年就被使用。如今全世界所有玻璃板总计约有四十亿平方米。此外，玻璃被用来制作试管、望远镜、显微镜、镜子和相机镜头。

POLYETHYLENE — (C2H4)N

By far the most popular plastic, polyethylene is used in grocery bags, artificial joints and plastic bottles. It's even found in chewing gum. In fact, polyethylene is so ubiquitous that it's hard to imagine life without it. But in 1933 when English chemists Eric Fawcett and Reginald Gibson discovered it, they thought of it as nothing more than a waste product. Over 70 years later, more than 60 million tones of polyethylene are made each year; but there is a downside, as much of it ends up in landfill where it takes hundreds of years to degrade.