Blockchain technology adoption of the manufacturers with product recycling considering green consumers

This study builds stylized models to explore the blockchain technology (BCT) adoption problem of the manufacturer for verifying product recycling information (VPRI), when there are original and green consumers in the market. Based on the practice and previous research, three modes of the manufacturer are constructed: no adopting BCT (Mode M-NB), adopting own BCT (Mode M-MB), and adopting the third-party BCT (Mode M-TB) platform for VPRI. The result indicates the BCT adoption mode of the manufacturer depends on the BCT scaling cost and the proportion of BCT verified to all recycling information. Specifically, if the proportion is lower but the scaling cost is higher, the manufacturer prefers Mode M-TB. It is because the lower proportion makes the manufacturer defray less in Mode M-TB but the higher scaling cost deters the manufacturer from choosing Mode MB. Besides, we find that BCT adoption improves both price and quantity of products for a lower proportion. But, surprisingly, our research finds that the recycling ratio in Mode M-TB will be reduced if the proportion is higher. Furthermore, BCT adoption may have a negative impact on the environment even if more end-of-life products are recycled. For instance, Mode M-MB/TB will seriously harm the environment when the proportion is lower but the carbon emission rate of unit product recycling relative to non-recycling is larger. © 2023 Elsevier Ltd