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Article: JD builds AI control system that can save China’s thermal power plants billions and reduce pollution

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6 / 10

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JD Digits, the digital technology arm of JD.com, has launched an AI system to improve the efficiency of thermal power plants. The system automatically adjusts boiler variables like coal feeding and air distribution in real time.

In testing, the AI system increased boiler combustion efficiency, which the company states could save China billions annually in coal and pollution costs. The project is a partnership with a state-owned energy firm and is being deployed in multiple Chinese cities.

The main topics covered are: the deployment of an AI efficiency system in thermal power plants, the resulting economic and environmental benefits, and the collaboration between tech and state-owned enterprises in China.

Original URL

https://www.scmp.com/tech/innovation/article/3114030/jd-builds-ai-control-system-can-save-chinas-thermal-power-plants?utm_source=rss_feed

Source Feed

Innovation - South China Morning Post

Published Date

2020-12-15 11:15

Fetched Date

2026-03-04 14:33

Processed Date

2026-03-04 15:06

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JD builds AI control system that can save China’s thermal power plants billions and reduce pollution
- China remains heavily dependent on fossil fuels and accounts for nearly 30 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions
- The AI system, which has been rolled out in Langfang city in Hebei province, automatically adjusts a range of variables for thermal boilers
JD Digits, the digital technology arm of e-commerce firm JD.com, has launched an artificial intelligence-driven system that improves the efficiency of thermal power plants, as China’s tech giants continue to apply AI technologies to a range of traditional industries to improve performance.
The AI control system, which has been rolled out in Langfang city in northern Hebei province, automatically adjusts a range of variables for thermal boilers in real time, including the coal feeding process, air distribution and water vapour levels, according to a statement on Monday from JD Digits.
The combustion efficiency of boilers fitted with the new AI-control system increased to 93.9 per cent from 92.75 per cent for boilers without it in a March test, according to the company, which added that an increase in boiler thermal efficiency of only 0.5 per cent “would save the country 7 billion yuan (US$1.07 billion) a year in coal consumption and pollution control costs.”
The project is a partnership with state-owned China Energy Investment Corporation and involves more than 70 power boilers in Langfang, the steel heartland of pollution-prone Hebei province. The AI control system has also been used in Nanning city in the southwestern Zhuang Autonomous Region of Guangxi since last year.