Yamaha Motor announced today that it will progressively switch the raw material used for its proprietary all-aluminium DiASil Cylinder from conventional virgin aluminium to recycled aluminium alloy. Once the switch has been completed for all products using DiASil Cylinders (scheduled for 2030), the transition is expected to reduce CO₂ emissions by approximately 47,000 tons annually (estimate).
The DiASil Cylinder is an all-aluminium cylinder design that requires neither an iron sleeve nor plating. Using its proprietary manufacturing technology, Yamaha Motor became the first company in the world to successfully develop and deploy this cylinder design in 2002, and it is used in a variety of Yamaha motorcycle and scooter models today. In addition to offering excellent wear resistance, seizure resistance, and heat dissipation, the DiASil Cylinder provides a variety of other benefits, including reduced weight, improved recyclability, and lower manufacturing costs.
Until now, Yamaha Motor has used virgin aluminium alloy as the raw material for DiASil Cylinders. This is because conventional recycled materials contain trace amounts of impurities, making it difficult to meet the quality standards required for DiASil Cylinders in terms of metal microstructure, surface properties, corrosion resistance, and other characteristics.
To address these challenges, Yamaha began developing a recycled aluminium alloy providing traits comparable to virgin aluminium that can be used to manufacture parts and components with the same production processes. Based on material design using thermodynamic calculations, Yamaha conducted repeated bench tests and vehicle evaluations and confirmed that the recycled alloy met all functional requirements, leading to the decision to put the material into practical use.
The switch to DiASil Cylinders using recycled aluminium alloy will begin with commuter models produced in Indonesia, with plans for a global rollout in the future.
Yamaha Motor, in line with its Yamaha Motor Group Environmental Plan 2050, is working toward achieving carbon neutrality throughout its entire supply chain, including the Company’s business activities, by 2050.*¹ As part of these efforts, Yamaha Motor aims to switch 100% of the aluminium raw materials used in its own manufacturing*² to sustainable alternatives by 2030, and this initiative represents one of the key measures toward achieving that goal.
*1 Emissions as a direct result of business activities(Scope 1 and 2) and emissions outside of these (Scope 3)
*2 Applies to major production bases in Japan and overseas
