AI-powered system reduces manual operations in sulfuric acid production

By Hu Yikai.

In Hubei Sanning Chemical Co.'s sulfuric acid workshop, control room screens flash with autonomous equipment operations, as the once-busy manual operators have become "smart managers." This marks the debut of the first AI-driven sulfuric acid production unit jointly developed by SUPCON and Sanning Chemical.
 

The AI-powered automated sulfuric acid production unit. Photo by Zheng Yougen.

Thanks to the new system, manual interventions have dropped dramatically from 6,000 times per day at peak to zero in some cases, with the daily average falling from more than 1,600 times to fewer than 10.

This system acts as a sort of brain for the production line, continuously predicting and adjusting critical parameters such as acid concentration, liquid levels, and temperature to ensure stable operating conditions. It also optimizes energy use by coordinating sulfuric acid output with the waste heat boiler load.

"Since this unit went online, we've seen a decrease in sulfur consumption, an increase in sulfuric acid yield, and a rise in steam production," stated Cai Yong, head of the acid production unit. "This has led to an overall integrated revenue increase of about 2 percent."

For every ton of sulfur processed, the system produces an additional 0.028 tons of medium-pressure steam, while sulfuric acid yield has improved by 3.5 percent. This translates to an annual efficiency gain of nearly 10 million yuan (US$1.4 million).

Fu Jiangshan and Tian Xuelian contributed to this story.