The exhaust pipes of the motorcycle were always exposed to high temperature exhaust gas. There was a problem of the tarnish or the rust during use, and it might be sometimes complained from a user.
Therefore we developed new surface treatment and could prevent these problems. New surface treatment is “Nano-film Coating” by the DC reactivity magnetron sputtering method (PVD method). We developed SiOxNy ceramic Nano-film of the thickness of 20-150 nm on the metal substrates.
This Nano-film was evaluated heat resistance, corrosion resistance, wear resistance and optical characteristics. It is able to get these performance satisfied enough. And the metal coloration is possible by controlling a refractive index and a film thickness of the Nano-film. The film was deposited in a three-dimensional shape by controlling the reactive gas composition, the gas ratio and sputtering power.
The exhaust parts are colored by three patterns that is “transparent and colorless”, “gold” and “blue”. The Nano-film Coating continues being mass-produced in 4 models since it was adopted in YAMAHA FZ1 in 2008.