A Visual Analysis of Hotspots and Frontiers in Blockchain Based on Scientific Knowledge Map

Abstract Blockchain is regarded as the most outstanding technological innovation in the 21st century. This will be an essential technical means to subvert the internet and improve traditional production relations. It has been valued by governments worldwide and incorporated into national development strategies. But there are also some problems to be solved in the application research of blockchain. In this study we used the knowledge map to sort out the research context of Chinese and international blockchain in a quantitative way, in order to bring research ideas and directions to scholars. We employed the visualization tool CiteSpace to analyze the related literature of blockchain in China and international, 3989 and 4825 literature from 2010 to 2021, respectively, downloaded from CNKI and Web of Science , then draw the knowledge maps of primary authors, critical literature, key journals, prominent research institutions, which showed the time, spatial distribution, research hotspots, research frontiers and evolution paths of the blockchain field. We found that ( 1 ) blockchain has become an information point tracked by researchers since 2015, and is currently in a period of vigorous development.（2）At present, China is far ahead of the number of papers published in the field of blockchain and depicts a rapid growth trend. ( 3 ) The subject knowledge structure in the field of blockchain research consists of three parts: cryptocurrency market efficiency and supervision, blockchain technology system innovation, and blockchain application scenario expansion. ( 4 ) The research hotspots mainly include ' Internet of Things ', ' smart contract ', ' bitcoin ', and ' security 'are the hot issues both in China and international research. Additionally, the research on the blockchain of China mainly focuses on ‘digital currency’, ‘inclusive finance’, ‘technology empowerment’, and ‘regulatory sandbox’, which prefers the sustainability of financial applications. International research on Blockchain focuses on ‘identity authentication’, ‘validity’, ‘energy trading’, and ‘frame structure,’ which are more inclined to the integration research of blockchain with computer and electrical engineering, focus on the application of emerging technologies on the sustainability of industry.