July 4, 2023
Kobe Steel, Ltd.
Kobe Steel, Ltd. announces that its low-CO2 blast furnace steel product Kobenable Steel has been selected for use in special steel wire rods for automobiles for the first time in Japan.
Since its launch in 2022, Kobenable Steel has been used in extensive industries such as steel sheets for automobiles, building materials, and ships. As it continues to increase its applications, Toyota Motor Corporation has employed Kobenable Premier,*1 which reduces CO2 emissions in the steelmaking process by 100% by means of the mass balance method,*2 in in the engine part fastening bolts manufactured by Aoyama Seisakusho Co., Ltd., as components of Toyota racing vehicle GR86 (carbon-neutral fuel vehicle).
The applied bolts are non-tempered steel bolts that do not require heat treatment in the bolt manufacturing process, eliminating annealing (softening heat treatment)*3 and tempering (quenching and tempering heat treatment)*4, which means they are produced with a manufacturing method that reduces CO2 emissions in both the steelmaking process and the bolt manufacturing process.
The racing vehicle GR86, which uses Kobenable Steel in its engine part fastening bolts, will compete in the ENEOS Super Taikyu Series 2023, Round 3 SUGO Super Taikyu 3 Hour Race to be held from July 8 to 9.
Toyota participates in the Super Taikyu Series with the hydrogen engine-equipped Corolla and the carbon-neutral fuel vehicle GR86. Racing vehicles are required to have a body made with high-quality materials as they need to withstand the harsh environment of motorsports. Kobenable Steel is a product that not only reduces CO2 emissions but also meets such quality-oriented requirements. Kobenable Steel is used in the hydrogen engine-equipped Corolla as well.*5
Leveraging the comprehensive strengths of Kobelco Group’s diverse businesses, technologies, and human resources, we will continue to provide solutions to the needs of society and to be a corporate group indispensable to our stakeholders.
*1 Two types of Kobenable Steel are currently available: Kobenable Premier with a 100% reduction in CO2 emissions per ton and Kobenable Half with a 50% reduction.
*2 The mass-balance method is to allocate specific characteristics to a certain portion of products according to the input amount of raw materials when there is a mix of raw materials with and with no such characteristics (e.g., CO2 reduction effects) in the manufacturing process.
*3 Softening heat treatment before wire drawing (heat treatment to ensure formability)
*4 Quenching and tempering heat treatment after cold forging (heat treatment to ensure strength, ductility, etc.)
The vehicle that competed in the NAPAC Fuji Super TEC 24 Hours Race in May 2022
(Photo provided by Toyota Motor Corporation)
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