Abstract
The construction industry's shift to a circular economy has been hindered by multiple challenges. The emergence of blockchain has however demonstrated promising potential in overcoming these barriers. Nonetheless, there is limited research regarding the system implementation dynamics of blockchain-based circular economy applications within the construction supply chain. This paper proposes a blockchain-based construction supply chain framework for advancing circular economy in the construction industry. Systematic Evidence Synthesis (SES), prototyping, and case study triangulation approaches are adopted to review, experiment, and validate the findings.
Relevant exploratory and experimental cases are identifed from Scopus and Web of Science databases for the SES process. The initial findings highlighted the main implementation domains, to include material passports, waste trading, and reverse logistics. Hyperledger and Ethereum are further identifed as the leading implementation platforms for developing prototypes. The key challenges identified from prototype development included, limited simulation samples, limited performance scalability, and uncertainty with return on investment. To address the challenges and gaps identified, a blockchain-based circular construction supply chain (BCCSC) framework is proposed. Modules from the proposed framework are experimented through a proof-of-concept prototype to demonstrate feasibility. Finally, selected cross-industry cases were triangulated to draw conceptual parallels and potential drawbacks in implementation.
Through a blockchain-based web marketplace, stakeholder interactions in the construction supply chain can be deepened to support circular business models. Furthermore, the framework's modularization allows for easy scalability and practical implementation. Recommendations are made towards research in cost reduction and enhanced collaboration strategies, as well as developing full-scale modules to demonstrate end-to-end functionality.
© 2025 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Relevant exploratory and experimental cases are identifed from Scopus and Web of Science databases for the SES process. The initial findings highlighted the main implementation domains, to include material passports, waste trading, and reverse logistics. Hyperledger and Ethereum are further identifed as the leading implementation platforms for developing prototypes. The key challenges identified from prototype development included, limited simulation samples, limited performance scalability, and uncertainty with return on investment. To address the challenges and gaps identified, a blockchain-based circular construction supply chain (BCCSC) framework is proposed. Modules from the proposed framework are experimented through a proof-of-concept prototype to demonstrate feasibility. Finally, selected cross-industry cases were triangulated to draw conceptual parallels and potential drawbacks in implementation.
Through a blockchain-based web marketplace, stakeholder interactions in the construction supply chain can be deepened to support circular business models. Furthermore, the framework's modularization allows for easy scalability and practical implementation. Recommendations are made towards research in cost reduction and enhanced collaboration strategies, as well as developing full-scale modules to demonstrate end-to-end functionality.
© 2025 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 145966 |
| Journal | Journal of Cleaner Production |
| Volume | 519 |
| Online published | 20 Jun 2025 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 10 Aug 2025 |
Funding
The authors would like to thank the Environment and Ecology Bureau of the HKSAR Government for financially supporting this research through the Green Tech Fund (Grant No.: GTF202110158). The authors would also like to acknowledge funding support received from the University of Adelaide through the Early Mid-Career Research Grant Scheme (Grant No.: 13137501).
UN SDGs
This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
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SDG 9 Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
Research Keywords
- Blockchain
- Circular economy
- Supply chain
- Construction industry
- Proof-of-Concept
Publisher's Copyright Statement
- This full text is made available under CC-BY 4.0. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
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GTF_EPD: Low Carbon Road Pavement by Maximising Material Circularity and Adopting Sustainable Materials
NG, S. T. T. (Principal Investigator / Project Coordinator), HOSSAIN, M. U. (Co-Investigator), WANG, Y. (Co-Investigator) & YE, H. (Co-Investigator)
1/01/23 → …
Project: Research
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