Does Industrial Robot Adoption Reduce Pollution Emission? Evidence from China

Fang Chen () and Wenge Liu
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Fang Chen: School of International Economics and International Relations, Liaoning University, Shenyang 110136, China
Wenge Liu: School of International Economics and International Relations, Liaoning University, Shenyang 110136, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 13, 1-19

Abstract: As China enters a high-quality development stage, balancing economic growth and environmental sustainability is essential. Can industrial intelligence reconcile these goals? Using theoretical modeling, this paper integrates production decisions, pollution emissions, and environmental regulations to construct a micro-level analytical framework incorporating technology choice and emission reduction investment. It theoretically explores how robot adoption affects firms’ emission reduction behaviors and empirically tests the model using data from Chinese listed companies (2011–2022). Results indicate that industrial robots significantly reduce firms’ pollution emission intensity through productivity boost, technological progress, and emission reduction effects. Additionally, heterogeneity analyses show that robots have stronger pollution-reducing impacts in heavily polluting industries, state-owned enterprises, and regions with stringent environmental regulations. Therefore, policymakers should encourage robot adoption based on local contexts, formulate differentiated environmental regulations, and implement targeted strategies to maximize robots’ emission reduction potential. Accelerating green and intelligent transformation of enterprises will further align ecological protection with sustainable economic and social development.

Keywords: industrial robot applications; pollution emission intensity; green benefits; listed companies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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