Cars made from pineapples and bananas could be on the roads in as little as two years, claim scientists. In what promises to be the ultimate green development, researchers in Brazil have used fibres from the plants to create a new generation of super-strong car bodies. They believe the material may in future not only be used to build car bodies, but also engine parts. Car parts? Scientists have used fibres from banana and pineapple plants to create a new generation of super-strong automotive plastics
在好莱坞动画片《汽车总动员》中的Q版汽车让我们过目不忘，汽车会说话？汽车能拯救世界？关于未来汽车的无数个问号在我们脑海中畅游，而科学家是这样告诉你答案的：未来两年内，用菠萝以及香蕉制造的汽车会问世。在倡导保护环境的呼声下，来自巴西的研究专家用“植物纤维”制造出了世界上“最强韧汽车骨架（塑料骨架）”，此外，专家还认为这些“水果材料”不仅仅会用来制造汽车的骨架，而且在不远的将来还会用来制造“引擎部分”，看来，科技的力量是巨大的，人的想象力是完全可以在现实中付诸于应用的。
（图片来源于网络）
The plastics, which are strengthened by the fruit fibres, are already being tested by manufacturers who believe they could be used in cars within two years. Dr Alcides Leao, from Sao Paulo State University, said reinforcing plastic with microscopic fibres from delicate fruits such as pineapples and bananas made them super-strong. 'The properties of these plastics are incredible,' he told the American Chemical Society in Anaheim, California. 'They are light, but very strong - 30 per cent lighter and three to four times stronger than regular plastic.
据悉，这种汽车塑料骨架不完全是用水果制造的，而是用“水果纤维”来加固，此举已经得到相关部门的证实，并在未来2年内正式投入使用。来自圣保罗州立大学的研究员Dr Alcides Leao说：“大自然的力量是神奇的，菠萝以及香蕉的显微纤维可以起到加强、加固的作用，加固汽车骨架的坚固度。”此外，据美国化学协会称，用水果纤维制造的塑料比普通塑料要“轻”，一般能减轻重量高达30%，在硬度上能达到普通塑料的3到4倍。