设在卡塔尔的得克萨斯农工大学(Texas A&M University)分校的一个由哈桑·巴兹(Hassan S.Bazzi)率领的科研小组，可能已经想出了一个用生物降解材料制造轮胎的办法。假如他们的创意可行，兴许能帮忙处置全球每年报废的大概10亿个轮胎所带来的各种问题。

 

几十年来，废弃的橡胶轮胎不时充溢着填埋场并让环境学家感到头疼。例如，到目前为止还不分明轮胎降解须要多长工夫。就算它们最终可以降解，轮胎中含有的一些有害化学物质也会渗入土壤。

 

得克萨斯农工大学的钻研人员认识到，他们可以将环戊烯分子（一种炼油的副产品）用作制造聚戊烯橡胶(polypentenamer)的单体，这种橡胶相似于天然橡胶。

 

他们正在停止试验，钻研新型合成橡胶是否可以与当今用于制造轮胎的其他材料与填料混合。

 

假如可行，钻研人员或答应以发明一种和目前轮胎中所用的合成材料同样巩固的新型橡胶，但同时很容易停止生物降解及再利用。

 

该项目的首席科学家之一罗伯特·图巴(Robert Tuba)表示，他们的目的是发明一种“对社区和环境都有益处”的材料。钻研人员们说，他们已有一个产业合作搭档，并希望用生物降解橡胶制造的轮胎最终能上路行驶。

 

Riding on biodegradable rubber tires?

New research may give old tires a new, environmentally-friendly future.

 

A research team led by Hassan S. Bazzi, at the Texas A&M University campus in Qatar may have come up with a way to make tires with biodegradable materials. If they are right, they might be able to help solve the myriad problems that come with the estimated 1 billion tires that wear out each year worldwide.

 

Leftover rubber tires have been the bane of landfills — and environmentalists — for decades. It’s unclear, for example, how long it takes for tires to decompose. And if they do eventually decompose, the tires contain some nasty chemicals that can leach into the soil.

 

The Texas A&M researchers realized they could string cyclopentene molecules — a byproduct of oil refining — together to make polypentenamers, which are similar to natural rubber.

 

They are conducting experiments to see if the new synthetic rubber can be mixed with other materials and fillers that go into the modern tire.

 

If it works, the researchers might be able to create a new kind of rubber that is as strong as synthetics that are used in current tires, but that is easy to biodegrade and reuse.

 

Robert Tuba, one of the lead researchers on the project, says the goal was to create something “that is good for the community and the environment.” The researchers say they have an industry partner and hope the biodegradable rubber will eventually hit the road.