科学家发明了一种不使用化石燃料的“空气等离子”发动机原型

A prototype jet engine can propel itself without using any fossil fuels, potentially paving the way for carbon-neutral air travel.

喷气发动机的原型可以在不使用任何化石燃料的情况下自行推进，这可能为碳中和航空旅行铺平道路。

The device compresses air and ionizes it with microwaves, generating plasma that thrusts it forward, according to research published Tuesday in the journal AIP Advances. That means planes may someday fly using just electricity and the air around them as fuel.

根据周二发表在《AIP进展》杂志上的研究，该设备压缩空气并用微波将其离子化，产生推动其前进的等离子体。这意味着飞机有一天可能仅使用电力和周围的空气作为燃料飞行。

There's a long way to go between a proof-of-concept prototype and installing an engine in a real plane. But the prototype was able to launch a one-kilogram (2.2-pound) steel ball 24 millimeters (almost one inch) into the air. That's the same thrust, proportional to scale, as a conventional jet engine.

从概念验证原型到在真正的飞机上安装引擎，还有很长的路要走。但原型能够将一公斤(2.2磅)的钢球发射到空中24毫米(几乎1英寸)。这和传统喷气发动机的推力是一样的，与比例成正比。

"Our results demonstrated that such a jet engine based on microwave air plasma can be a potentially viable alternative to the conventional fossil fuel jet engine," lead researcher and Wuhan University engineer Jau Tang said in a press release.

首席研究员、武汉大学工程师唐钰(音译)在一份新闻稿中说：“我们的研究结果表明，这种基于微波空气等离子体的喷气发动机，可以成为传统化石燃料喷气发动机的潜在可行替代品。”。

Air travel represents a small but not insignificant portion factor of climate change. The New York Times reported in September that commercial air is responsible for 2.5 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions - though that excludes military jets.

航空旅行是气候变化的一个很小但并非微不足道的部分因素。《纽约时报》9月报道称，商用航空公司的温室气体排放量占总排放量的2.5%，不过这还不包括军用飞机。

"The motivation of our work is to help solve the global warming problems owing to humans' use of fossil fuel combustion engines to power machinery, such as cars and airplanes," Tang said in the release.

唐钰在发布会上说：“我们工作的动机是帮助解决全球变暖问题，因为人类使用化石燃料燃烧发动机为汽车和飞机等机械提供动力。”。

"There is no need for fossil fuel with our design, and therefore, there is no carbon emission to cause greenhouse effects and global warming."

“我们的设计不需要化石燃料，因此不用担心碳排放造成温室效应和全球变暖。”