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CO₂ Sensor Fitted to Mazda Super Taikyu Endurance Race Car for the First Time
Contributing to Successful Demonstration Experiment of CO₂ Capture System under Harsh Conditions
December 25, 2025
NGK INSULATORS, LTD. (hereinafter, “NGK”) announced that its CO2 sensor has been adopted as part of an onboard CO2 capture system for a Super Taikyu endurance race car made by Mazda Motor Corporation (head office: Hiroshima Prefecture; Representative Director, President and CEO: Masahiro Moro; hereinafter “Mazda”). The CO2 sensor was recognized for its ability to operate under harsh race conditions and measure the amount of CO2 captured. Through this initiative, NGK will contribute to the realization of a carbon neutral society.
In the demonstration experiment, NGK’s CO2 sensor was used in the harsh conditions of a race car, which has traditionally been considered difficult, where it contributed to stable control of the CO2 capture system and realized high-precision measurement of captured CO2. By supplying the sensor, NGK contributed to the successful demonstration experiment of new carbon neutral technologies developed by Mazda.
NGK’s CO2 sensor leverages ceramic technologies cultivated for onboard NOx sensors. It has a distinctive ability to detect CO2 concentration in exhaust gas in real time under high temperature and high humidity, allowing accurate monitoring of the system operation status. This enables a quantitative assessment of the atmospheric CO2 reduction effect according to distance travelled, increasing the reliability of the demonstration experiment.
Mazda is targeting 2035 to realize mobility where “driving more leads to CO₂ reduction.” The company believes that if its vehicles run on carbon-neutral fuel and capture the CO₂ emitted, it will be possible to reduce the amount of CO₂ in the atmosphere in proportion to the distance traveled. A demonstration experiment was conducted by installing the CO2 capture system on Mazda’s car for the Super Taikyu Series Round 7, held on November 15 and 16.
As a key technology supporting this concept, NGK’s CO2 sensor is contributing to carbon neutrality in the mobility field.
Under its long-term vision looking ahead to the future in 2050, “NGK Group Vision: Road to 2050,” the NGK Group aims to realize a realignment of its businesses with the carbon neutral (CN) and digital society (DS) fields. Looking ahead, NGK aims to realize a carbon neutral society in the mobility domain by continuing demonstration experiments for the purpose of increasing the CO2 capture rate in race cars through the Super Taikyu Series, in which Mazda plans to participate.
Reference material
High-speed capable CO2 sensor for use in high temperature and high humidity conditions