It’s no one’s favourite scent¹ – but sweat could soon smell a whole lot sweeter.

没有人喜欢汗味，但这种味道很快就会闻起来香很多。

Scientists have created a perfume that breaks down sweat and actually smells better the more someone perspires².

科学家已经研制出了一种香水，它可以分解汗水。人们出汗越多，香水越好闻。

The discovery paves the way for a deodorant³ that becomes more powerful the hotter you are, making summer journeys on crowded trains far more pleasant.

这一发现为生产越热越起作用的除味剂铺平了道路，也会让人在夏日里乘坐拥挤的火车出行时更加愉快。

People could even delay showering after playing sport, safe in the knowledge that they don’t smell unattractively sweaty.

人们甚至不必在运动后马上沐浴，因为知道他们并不会有难闻的汗味。

The science could also be used to create sprays that are particularly good at freshening the air of damp bathrooms or sweaty changing rooms.

这一技术同样可以用来制造能在潮湿浴室或是充满汗味的更衣室里保持空气清爽的喷雾剂。

At its heart are solutions called ionic liquids. They do not have a smell themselves and can swallow up the scent of any chemical that is attached to them.

其核心是一种称为离子液体的溶液。它们自身没有任何味道，但是可以吸收附着在它们之上的任何物质的味道。

Scientists at Queen’s University Belfast have developed a version that goes on to release the absorbed smell – but only when it is exposed to water.

贝尔法斯特女王大学的科学家们还研发出了一种溶解在水中时可以继续释放被吸收味道的香水。

When they attached a sweet perfume to an ionic liquid, the scent disappeared.

当他们将芬芳的香水附着在这种离子液体上时，香味消失了。

But when water was added to the mix, the fragrance⁴ emerged once more.

但是当继续向混合液体中加水时，香味再次出现了。

And the more water the researchers added, the stronger the smell, a Royal Society of Chemistry journal reports.

据《皇家化学学会》期刊报道，加入的水越多，香味就越浓烈。

The ionic liquid can also trap and break down the chemicals behind the nasty smell of sweat – making it even more attractive to deodorant manufactures.

这种离子液体还能够捕捉并分解造成难闻汗味的化学物质，使得这种液体对除味剂制造业更具吸引力。

Contrary to popular belief, sweat itself is odourless.

与人们通常所认为的相反，汗水其实没有气味。

Body odour occurs when bacteria feast on the sugary proteins in sweat, releasing pungent⁵ chemicals.

只有当细菌分解汗水中的糖蛋白时，才会释放出有刺激性气味的物质，进而产生体臭。