US Department of Energy, led by ORNL, modernizes the paper industry with AI through CRAFT

Summary

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), led by ORNL, has launched the CRAFT national initiative. Rather than building new facilities, the initiative aims to modernize aging cellulose, paper, and packaging plants through AI-driven process optimization, advanced modeling, and automation.

Why it matters

The U.S. paper industry, which supports thousands of manufacturing jobs in rural areas, is increasingly losing global competitiveness due to its reliance on decades-old infrastructure. CRAFT targets the most energy-intensive stages—cellulose production, drying, and chemical recovery—using AI and digital tools to potentially reduce production costs. The project also holds the potential to bridge the long gap between laboratory research and factory deployment. Furthermore, it lays the groundwork for preserving high-value industrial employment in communities that have long depended on the sector.

Highlights

• Using AI and complex modeling to identify operational bottlenecks, reduce downtime, and increase efficiency in existing plants rather than building new facilities
• Employing AI-assisted discovery and molecular-scale modeling to address energy-intensive cellulose production, water removal, and drying processes
• A multi-laboratory consortium comprising ORNL, PNNL, INL, the Rockies National Laboratory, and industry partners to accelerate the commercialization and mitigate risks of pilot-scale technologies

Critical take

The article reads largely like a DOE press release. It lacks budget figures, concrete timelines, or measurable KPIs. This makes it difficult to assess whether CRAFT will go beyond the standard 'AI + traditional industry' narrative. In a sector where process physics and chemistry are decisive, the promise that data-driven optimization alone will yield significant efficiency gains remains unproven at scale.