Abstract
Biomass power generation technologies, which are now mature and competitive, can alleviate power shortages, reduce the damaging environmental effects of coal-based power generation, and provide alternative renewable energy. While understanding trends is essential for making policies and decisions, few studies to date have examined biomass power generation’s technological evolutionary development path from a patent data perspective. This paper uses patent data to reveal the biomass power generation technological evolutionary trajectory. Using growth curve and citation network approaches, the evolution of the core technologies and the main trajectories over time were identified. After simulations and predictions based on the logistic growth curve, it was revealed that biomass power generation had entered technological maturity and would meet saturation in 2031. Main path analysis was introduced to trace the technological trajectory. The patent citation analysis revealed six main technology paths. Further analysis identified biomass power generation hybridization, the use of waste to generate power, and bioenergy with carbon capture and storage as potential technologies to achieve negative emissions.
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Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the anonymous referees for their insightful comments and suggestions to improve this paper.
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This research has been supported by the Youth Program of National Social Science Foundation (Grant No. 19CJL047) and the China Scholarship Council (Grant No. 201706240166). The authors would like to thank the anonymous referees for their insightful comments and suggestions to improve this paper.
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ML constructed method framework, analyzed and interpreted the patent data regarding biomass power generation, and was a major contributor in writing the manuscript. XX verified the visualization process and results and edited the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Li, M., Xu, X. Tracing technological evolution and trajectory of biomass power generation: a patent-based analysis. Environ Sci Pollut Res 30, 32814–32826 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-24339-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-24339-0