R.E.M (Rekyasa Energi Manufaktur) Jurnal
Vol 11 No 1 (2026): June

Machine Learning-Based Modeling of Boiler Efficiency: Impact Analysis of Operational Variables Using Random Forest, XGBoost, and ANN

Muhamad Iqbal Syachjaya Syachjaya (Magister Energi Universitas Diponegoro)
Heri Sutanto (Unknown)
Marcelinus Christwardana (Unknown)
Subhan Hasisi (Unknown)
Napolin Niuhardson Siregar (Department of Operation, PT SKS Listrik Kalimantan)



Article Info

Publish Date
19 Jun 2026

Abstract

Enhancing Circulating Fluidized Bed (CFB) boiler efficiency is a critical objective in industrial energy management, often hampered by the intricate, non-linear dynamics of operational parameters. This study evaluates and benchmarks three machine learning architectures—Random Forest (RF), XGBoost, and Artificial Neural Network (ANN) to develop a robust predictive model for boiler thermal efficiency using historical industrial telemetry. The analysis utilizes six key operational variables, including Air-Fuel Ratio (AFR) and Bed Temperature, for model training and cross-validation. Empirical results demonstrate that XGBoost serves as the most effective predictive framework, achieving a Coefficient of Determination ( ) of 0.495 and a Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) of 0.040, thereby outperforming RF and ANN in capturing industrial data noise through its sequential optimization and regularization mechanisms. A primary finding identifies AFR as the most influential factor, exhibiting a strong positive correlation (0.84) and consistent top-tier feature importance rankings across all paradigms. This research provides a validated data-driven methodology for real-time boiler optimization, emphasizing stoichiometric synchronization as the paramount strategy for improving thermal performance and minimizing fuel-related operational expenditures.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

rem

Publisher

Subject

Engineering

Description

Focus and Scope Aim: to facilitate scholar, researchers, and teachers for publishing the original articles of review articles. Scope: Mechanical Engineering include: Energy Conversion Renewable Energy Manufacturing Materials and Design Engineering ...