Abstract Blockchain technology has attracted a great deal of attentions as an effective way to innovate business processes. It has to be integrated with other Business Process Management system (BPM) components to implement specified functionalities related to the applications. The current efforts in integrating this technology into BPM are at a very early stage. To apply Blockchain into business processes efficiently, Blockchain and business process characteristics must be identified. Inconsistency of confirmation settlement that heavily relies on the implementation of consensus protocol poses a major challenge in business process operations, especially ones that are time-critical. In addition, validators, nodes responsible for performing consensus operations in a Blockchain system, can introduce bias and as a result are not trustable. This paper first defines Blockchain and also investigates the characteristics of Blockchain and business processes. Then, we suggest an architecture of business processes in Blockchain era to overcome the problems of time inconsistency and consensus bias. The architecture provides persistency, validity, auditability, and disintermediary that Blockchain offers. The architecture also provides flexibility by allowing business partner to select nodes in performing consensus; thus bias is mitigated.
This paper researches decentralized data storage represented by blockchain technology and the possibility of its development in sustainable logistics and supply chain management. Although the benefits of blockchain technology have been most widely researched in the financial sector, major challenges in logistics, such as order delay, damage to goods, errors, and multiple data entry can also be minimized by introducing blockchain technology. This paper presents a comprehensive review of the current and rising trends of blockchain technology usage in logistics and supply chain management.
The cyber security of modern power systems has drawn increasing attention in both academia and industry. Many detection and defense methods for cyber-attacks have therefore been proposed to enhance robustness of modern power systems. In this paper, we propose a new, distributed blockchain-based protection framework to enhance the self-defensive capability of modern power systems against cyber-attacks. We present a comprehensive discussion on how blockchain technology can be used to enhance the robustness and security of the power grid, by using meters as nodes in a distributed network which encapsulates meter measurements as blocks. Effectiveness of the proposed protection framework is demonstrated via simulation experiments on the IEEE-118 benchmark system.
Recently, blockchain technology has gained considerable attention from researchers and practitioners. This is mainly due to its unique features including decentralization, security, reliability, and data integrity. Despite this growing interest, little is known about the current state of knowledge and practice regarding the use of blockchain technology in education. This article is a systematic review of research investigating blockchain-based educational applications. It focuses on three main themes: (1) educational applications that have been developed with blockchain technology, (2) benefits that blockchain technology could bring to education, and (3) challenges of adopting blockchain technology in education. A detailed results analysis of each theme was conducted as well as an intensive discussion based on the findings. This review also offers insight into other educational areas that could benefit from blockchain technology.
Blockchain is a distributed ledger technology expected to have significant impacts on the accounting and auditing profession. This study, applicable and timely for both accounting and auditing scholars and practitioners, explores blockchain technology and its main implications for the accounting and auditing profession. The research question addressed in this study is: What are the major themes emerging from academic research and professional reports and websites debating blockchain technology in the accounting and auditing context? A literature review of academic literature and professional reports and websites is performed to identify a taxonomy of emerging themes. The study finds that the most discussed themes in scholarly works and professional sources are governance, transparency and trust issues in the blockchain ecosystem, blockchain-enabled continuous audits, smart contract applications and the paradigmatic shift in accountants' and auditors' roles. Based on these four themes, practical implications for accountants and auditors on how to approach the blockchain development are provided. Moreover, this study offers suggestions for future research on accounting and auditing in the blockchain era.
Abstract The concept of digital twin was originally proposed to assist product lifecycle management through the high-fidelity virtual product. In product lifecycle, there are many participators constructing a complicated network with enormous product lifecycle data. It is difficult to manage data of digital twin efficiently and securely from the perspectives of data storage, data access, data sharing, and data authenticity among the complicated network. Moreover, the virtual product is always updated to the latest state of the physical product by overwriting the history virtual product that records the development process of digital twin. To address abovementioned data management problems simultaneously, a data management method for digital twin of product based on blockchain technology is proposed in this paper. A peer-to-peer network is constructed to enhance data sharing efficiency among participators. The basic structure of blockchain is introduced, including block, chain, and transaction. The blockchain is used for data storage through cryptography that ensuring only eligible participators can access the corresponding data. The change sensitive characteristic of blockchain can ensure data authenticity as well. In addition, the concept of smart contract can be used to execute some actions automatically to increase data sharing efficiency. A case study is presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed data management method. The results show that the proposed method can solve the abovementioned data management problems simultaneously.
Blockchain has been envisioned to be a disruptive technology with potential for applications in various industries. As more and more different blockchain platforms have emerged, it is essential to assess their performance in different use cases and scenarios. In this paper, we conduct a systematic survey on the blockchain performance evaluation by categorizing all reviewed solutions into two general categories, namely, empirical analysis and analytical modelling. In the empirical analysis, we comparatively review the current empirical blockchain evaluation methodologies, including benchmarking, monitoring, experimental analysis and simulation. In analytical modelling, we investigate the stochastic models applied to performance evaluation of mainstream blockchain consensus algorithms. Through contrasting, comparison and grouping different methods together, we extract important criteria that can be used for selecting the most suitable evaluation technique for optimizing the performance of blockchain systems based on their identified bottlenecks. Finally, we conclude the survey by presenting a list of possible directions for future research.
Abstract Immunization is an indispensable mechanism for preventing infectious diseases in modern society, and vaccine safety is closely related to public health and national security. However, issues such as vaccine expiration and vaccine record fraud are still widespread in vaccine supply chains. Therefore, an effective management system for the supervision of vaccine supply chains is urgently required. As the next generation of core technology after the Internet, blockchain is designed to build trust mechanisms that can change current information management methods. Meanwhile, the development of machine learning technologies provides additional ways to analyze the data in information management systems. The main objective of this study is to develop a “vaccine blockchain” system based on blockchain and machine learning technologies. This vaccine blockchain system is designed to support vaccine traceability and smart contract functions, and can be used to address the problems of vaccine expiration and vaccine record fraud. Additionally, the use of machine learning models can provide valuable recommendations to immunization practitioners and recipients, allowing them to choose better immunization methods and vaccines.
This study looks into the current, and potential uses of Blockchain technology in business, specifically in Accounting and in cybersecurity. We relate Blockchain uses to current concerns within cyb...
Managing the integrity of products and processes in a multi-stakeholder supply chain environment is a significant challenge. Many current solutions suffer from data fragmentation, lack of reliable provenance, and diverse protocol regulations across multiple distributions and processes. Amongst other solutions, Blockchain has emerged as a leading technology, since it provides secure traceability and control, immutability, and trust creation among stakeholders in a low cost IT solution. Although Blockchain is making a significant impact in many areas, there are many impediments to its widespread adoption in supply chains. This article is the first survey of its kind, with detailed analysis of the challenges and future directions in Blockchain-enabled supply chains. We review the existing digitalization of the supply chain including the role of GS1 standards and technologies. Current use cases and startups in the field of Blockchain-enabled supply chains are reviewed and presented in tabulated form. Technical and non-technical challenges in the adoption of Blockchain for supply chain applications are critically analyzed, along with the suitability of various consensus algorithms for applications in the supply chain. The tools and technologies in the Blockchain ecosystem are depicted and analyzed. Some key areas as future research directions are also identified which must be addressed to realize mass adoption of Blockchain-based in supply chain traceability. Finally, we propose MOHBSChain, a novel framework for Blockchain-enabled supply chains.
Abstract Blockchain has received global concern as a research focus in recent years. It is a decentralized and unreliably distributed database technology. Numerous countries and researchers have successively applied blockchain in various fields. CiteSpace and VOSviewer were adopted as bibliometric analysis tools in this paper to obtain a comprehensive overview of blockchain technology and grasp the current research emphasis. The Web of Science core collection database was used as the primary source for data collection. The data were collected from 3826 articles published from 2013 to 2020. Specifically, the publication trends and categories might throw light on the development trends and current domains in terms of blockchain research. The most influential and productive authors, institutions, countries, and journals were involved in this bibliometric analysis. Theoretical knowledge and hot research topics on blockchain mainly ranged over “smart contract”, “bitcoin”, “security”, “ethereum”, and “cryptography”. A cluster analysis from the keyword perspective was carried out to obtain emerging trends and frontiers of blockchain. The results showed that future research should concentrate on management, blockchain technology, energy, machine learning, and smart home. Therefore, this paper assisted scholars and practitioners in getting a comprehensive understanding of the status quo and trends of blockchain research.
Traditional traceability system has problems of centralized management, opaque information, untrustworthy data, and easy generation of information islands. To solve the above problems, this paper designs a traceability system based on blockchain technology for storage and query of product information in supply chain of agricultural products. Leveraging the characteristics of decentralization, tamper-proof and traceability of blockchain technology, the transparency and credibility of traceability information increased. A dual storage structure of “database + blockchain” on-chain and off-chain traceability information is constructed to reduce load pressure of the chain and realize efficient information query. Blockchain technology combined with cryptography is proposed to realize the safe sharing of private information in the blockchain network. In addition, we design a reputation-based smart contract to incentivize network nodes to upload traceability data. Furthermore, we provide performance analysis and practical application, the results show that our system improves the query efficiency and the security of private information, guarantees the authenticity and reliability of data in supply chain management, and meets actual application requirements.
Abstract Blockchain-based technologies are predicted as major disruptors for numerous business applications and processes, which bears huge implications for e-commerce. Given the ability of blockchain and related technologies to create so-called “trustless systems” with idiosyncratic properties, various business models and established processes that have emerged over the years to ensure trust, reliability and enforceability in business-to-consumer (B2C), business-to-business (B2B), business-to-government (B2G) and consumer-to-consumer (C2C) relations need to be questioned and potentially adjusted. Blockchain has the potential to shake the foundation of e-commerce by enabling exchange relations that are trustless and operate without dedicated intermediaries or even central authorities in the case of permissionless blockchains. Furthermore, the exchange of information and value between companies and consumers might change considerably by enabling unified access to immutable data along the entire supply chain. In this paper, a framework and 19 high-level research questions are developed to inspire researchers to closely investigate the potential impact of blockchain on e-commerce. The main categories include (a) technological, (b) legal and (c) organizational and quality issues as well as (d) consumer issues. This paper illustrates how blockchain potentially impacts different elements of e-commerce in these respective areas.
The fast development of Blockchain technology makes it widely applied in several fields of digital transactions, like e-government affairs and the protection of financial transactions. In this article, we propose a homomorphic encryption-based Blockchain for circuit copyright protection that effectively addresses the issues in the protection of circuit copyright transactions, such as low security of private data, low efficiency in transaction data storage, cooperation and supervision. First, we establish a homomorphic encryption-based mathematical model by utilizing Blockchain and intelligent contract, and next, the algorithms that include Blockchain generation, homomorphic chain encryption/decryption, and intelligent contract are designed. As the intelligent contract is correctly executed in Blockchain, a fully homomorphic encryption-based identity authentication protocol is tackled for Blockchain, given that it ensures the change operation of any third-party in Blockchain and realizes real-time verification. The system is apposite for circuit copyright protection in a blockchain network, due to the use of distributed identity authentication and real-time extensible storage improves the security and extensibility of blockchain-based circuit copyright protection. The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm has reduced the transmission cost and improved the efficiency of data storage and supervision. In addition, it is resilient to several common attacks (e.g., double-spending attacks), yet incurs low cost/overhead and has a higher level of security when compared to three other competing algorithms.