Blockchain Carbon Intensity Tracking with Smart Contract Verification
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current carbon accounting systems lack transparency and efficiency in measuring and verifying carbon emissions across supply chains, leading to challenges in substantiating environmental claims, inefficiencies in carbon credit trading, and difficulties in ensuring the legitimacy and value of carbon credits.
Innovation Solution
A blockchain-based system that utilizes smart contracts and machine learning algorithms to track and verify carbon intensity (CI) scores throughout a supply chain, generating CI tokens with value correlated to the CI score, and providing intelligent suggestions for reducing emissions, ensuring accurate and transparent carbon credit transactions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional carbon accounting methods are used, then carbon emissions can be estimated, but transparency and verifiability of carbon credit transactions are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a blockchain as an intermediary system that mediates between carbon emission data sources and verification entities. The blockchain provides a transparent, immutable ledger that all participants can access, eliminating information asymmetry and enabling trusted verification without requiring centralized authorities.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces traditional mechanical verification processes with automated smart contracts that execute verification logic automatically. Smart contracts encode the verification rules and automatically validate carbon credit transactions, eliminating manual verification processes and enhancing both transparency and reliability.
2Measurement precision
If manual verification of carbon credits is performed, then accuracy can be maintained, but processing time and operational efficiency are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service verification where the system automatically verifies carbon credit transactions against predefined criteria encoded in smart contracts. The system serves itself by automatically checking emission data, validating credits, and executing transactions without requiring manual intervention, thereby maintaining accuracy while significantly reducing processing time.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent substitutes manual verification mechanisms with automated smart contract execution. The smart contracts automatically perform verification calculations, validate data integrity, and execute transactions instantly, replacing time-consuming manual processes while maintaining measurement precision through programmable verification logic.
3Measurement precision
If comprehensive carbon tracking is implemented across the supply chain, then measurement precision improves, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the complex carbon tracking system into modular components: data collection points at various supply chain stages, smart contract verification modules, and blockchain recording layers. Each segment handles specific measurement tasks independently, allowing precise carbon intensity measurement while keeping the overall system architecture manageable through functional decomposition.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a universal blockchain-based platform that handles multiple functions: data collection, verification, transaction execution, and audit trail maintenance. This multi-functional system reduces overall complexity by consolidating what would otherwise require separate specialized systems into a single integrated platform that serves all carbon accounting needs.
4Productivity
If carbon credits are traded without blockchain verification, then trading speed is faster, but risk of double counting and illegitimate transactions increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual trading processes with automated smart contract-based transactions. The smart contracts automatically verify the legitimacy of each carbon credit transaction, check for double counting, and execute trades instantly. This substitution maintains fast trading speeds while dramatically improving reliability through programmable verification that prevents fraudulent transactions.
Solution Approach 2:
The blockchain serves as a trusted intermediary that mediates all carbon credit transactions. It provides real-time verification of credit legitimacy and prevents double counting by maintaining a shared, immutable record of all transactions. This intermediary enables fast, reliable trading by eliminating the need for slow manual verification while ensuring transaction integrity.
Data Source
AI summary
Examples of the present disclosure describe systems/methods for automatically generating and tracking a carbon intensity (CI) score assigned to a particular product as the product traverses through a processing plant and discrete steps in a supply chain. In some examples, intermediate CI scores may be assigned to the product as it completes each step in its life cycle. The intermediate CI scores may be aggregated to produce a final CI score. Each intermediate CI score is recorded on a blockchain, such that the CI score is independently verifiable and auditable. In other example aspects, a machine-learning model may be applied to the input data received from each supply chain stakeholder and CI scores, wherein the machine-learning model generates intelligent suggestions to stakeholders for how to tweak their processes to lower CI scores. In other examples, a CI score may be used to derive a value for a CI token.