Design, Implementation and Practical Energy-Efficiency Evaluation of a Blockchain Based Academic Credential Verification System for Low-Power Nodes
Source abstract
Abstract
The educational system manages extensive documentation and paperwork, which can lead to human errors and sometimes abuse or fraud, such as the falsification of diplomas, certificates or other credentials. In fact, in recent years, multiple cases of fraud have been detected, representing a significant cost to society, since fraud harms the trustworthiness of certificates and academic institutions. To tackle such an issue, this article proposes a solution aimed at recording and verifying academic records through a decentralized application that is supported by a smart contract deployed in the Ethereum blockchain and by a decentralized storage system based on Inter-Planetary File System (IPFS). The proposed solution is evaluated in terms of performance and energy efficiency, comparing the results obtained with a traditional Proof-of-Work (PoW) consensus protocol and the new Proof-of-Authority (PoA) protocol. The results shown in this paper indicate that the latter is clearly greener and demands less CPU load. Moreover, this article compares the performance of a traditional computer and two Single-Board Computers (SBCs) (a Raspberry Pi 4 and an Orange Pi One), showing that is possible to make use of the latter low-power devices to implement blockchain nodes but at the cost of higher response latency. Furthermore, the impact of Ethereum gas limit is evaluated, demonstrating its significant influence on the blockchain network performance. Thus, this article provides guidelines, useful practical evaluations and key findings that will help the next generation of green blockchain developers and researchers.
Source: crossref · Quality: baseline
Research context
OpenAlex topics: Blockchain Technology Applications and Security · IoT and Edge/Fog Computing · Cloud Data Security Solutions
SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.
Affiliations
Department of Computer Engineering, Faculty of Computer Science, Universidade da Coruña, 15071 A Coruña, Spain
Centro de Investigación CITIC, Universidade da Coruña, 15071 A Coruña, Spain
Funding
European Union NextGenerationEU/PRTR
References (100+)
Show source-provided references
1. Carmichael, J., and Eaton, S. (2023). Fake Degrees and Fraudulent Credentials in Higher Education: Conclusions and Future Directions. Ethics and Integrity in Educational Contexts, Springer.10.1007/978-3-031-21796-8_13 ↗
2. Ezell, A., and Bear, J. (2025, April 01). Degree Mills: The Billion-Dollar Industry that Has Sold over a Million Fake Diplomas 2005. Available online: https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:109604213.
3. Alammary, A., Alhazmi, S., Almasri, M., and Gilani, S. (2019). Blockchain-Based Applications in Education: A Systematic Review. Appl. Sci., 9.10.3390/app9122400 ↗
4. Chen, C.L., Wang, T., Tsaur, W.J., Weng, W., Deng, Y.Y., Cui, J., and Leng, J. (2021). Based on Consortium Blockchain to Design a Credit Verifiable Cross University Course Learning System. Secur. Commun. Netw., 2021.10.1155/2021/8241801 ↗
5. Jovović, B., Popović, T., Šandi, S., and Djikanović, Z. (2023, January 15–18). A Blockchain-Based Approach to Management of University Diploma Authenticity. Proceedings of the 2023 27th International Conference on Information Technology (IT), Zabljak, Montenegro.10.1109/IT57431.2023.10078715 ↗
6. Varriale, V., Cammarano, A., Michelino, F., and Caputo, M. (2023). Industry 5.0 and Triple Bottom Line Approach in Supply Chain Management: The State-of-the-Art. Sustainability, 15.10.3390/su15075712 ↗
7. Silaghi, D.L., and Popescu, D.E. (2025). A Systematic Review of Blockchain-Based Initiatives in Comparison to Best Practices Used in Higher Education Institutions. Computers, 14.10.3390/computers14040141 ↗
8. (2025, April 01). Blockcerts—The Open Standard for Blockchain Credentials. Available online: https://www.blockcerts.org.
9. (2025, April 01). BCDiploma Official Webpage. Available online: https://www.bcdiploma.com.
10. Nakamoto, S. (2025, April 01). Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System. Available online: https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf.
11. Buterin, V. (2025, April 01). Ethereum: A Next-Generation Smart Contract and Decentralized Application Platform. Available online: https://ethereum.org/es/whitepaper/.
12. A survey on the security of blockchain systems10.1016/j.future.2017.08.020 ↗
13. Taherdoost, H. (2023). Smart Contracts in Blockchain Technology: A Critical Review. Information, 14.10.3390/info14020117 ↗
14. A blockchain architecture for industrial applications10.1016/j.bcra.2022.100088 ↗
15. Blockchain, an enabling technology for transparent and accountable decentralized public participatory GIS10.1016/j.cities.2020.102850 ↗
16. A Review on Blockchain Technologies for an Advanced and Cyber-Resilient Automotive Industry10.1109/ACCESS.2019.2895302 ↗
17. An Overview of Blockchain for Industry 5.0: Towards Human-Centric, Sustainable and Resilient Applications10.1109/ACCESS.2024.3435374 ↗
18. Smart Contract: Attacks and Protections10.1109/ACCESS.2020.2970495 ↗
19. A Survey on Technologies Which Make Bitcoin Greener or More Justified10.1109/ACCESS.2022.3190891 ↗
20. Fernández-Caramés, T., and Fraga-Lamas, P. (2024). A Comprehensive Survey on Green Blockchain: Developing the Next Generation of Energy Efficient and Sustainable Blockchain Systems. arXiv.
21. Fine-Grained Benchmarking and Targeted Optimization: Enabling Green IoT-Oriented Blockchain in the 6G Era10.1109/TGCN.2022.3185610 ↗
22. Toward a Green Blockchain: Engineering Merkle Tree and Proof of Work for Energy Optimization10.1109/TNSM.2022.3219494 ↗
23. (2025, April 01). OrbitDB Official Repository. Available online: https://github.com/orbitdb/.
24. (2025, April 01). InterPlanetary File System. Available online: https://ipfs.io/.
25. Gresch, J., Rodrigues, B., John Scheid, E., Kanhere, S., and Stiller, B. (2018, January 18–20). The Proposal of a Blockchain-Based Architecture for Transparent Certificate Handling. Proceedings of the BIS 2018 International Workshops, Berlin, Germany.10.1007/978-3-030-04849-5_16 ↗
26. (2025, April 01). DApp for Credential Verification. Available online: https://gitlab.com/helene-project1/decentralized-verification-system.
27. Fernández-Blanco, G., Froiz-Míguez, I., Fraga-Lamas, P., and Fernández-Caramés, T.M. (2024, January 26–29). A Blockchain Based System for Preventing Academic Forgery: Design and Practical Evaluation for CPU-Based and Low-Power Computers. Proceedings of the 2024 6th International Conference on Blockchain Computing and Applications (BCCA), Dubai, United Arab Emirates.10.1109/BCCA62388.2024.10844456 ↗
28. Thomas, C., Fraga-Lamas, P., and Fernández-Caramés, T.M. (2020). Leveraging Blockchain for Sustainability and Open Innovation: A Cyber-Resilient Approach toward EU Green Deal and UN Sustainable Development Goals. Computer Security Threats, IntechOpen. Chapter 8.10.5772/intechopen.92371 ↗
29. Tariq, U., Ahmed, I., Bashir, A., and Shaukat Dar, K. (2023). A Critical Cybersecurity Analysis and Future Research Directions for the Internet of Things: A Comprehensive Review. Sensors, 23.10.3390/s23084117 ↗
30. A Review on the Use of Blockchain for the Internet of Things10.1109/ACCESS.2018.2842685 ↗
31. Blockchain Technologies in Practice10.1109/MS.2020.2986253 ↗
32. Blockchain for 5G and beyond networks: A state of the art survey10.1016/j.jnca.2020.102693 ↗
33. Blockchain’s Carbon and Environmental Footprints10.1109/MC.2022.3176989 ↗
34. Ghadertootoonchi, A., Bararzadeh, M., and Fani, M. (2023, January 8–9). Long- and Short-Term Prediction of Bitcoin Energy Consumption. Proceedings of the 2023 8th International Conference on Technology and Energy Management (ICTEM), Babol, Iran.10.1109/ICTEM56862.2023.10084150 ↗
35. Khosravi, A., and Säämäki, F. (2023). Beyond Bitcoin: Evaluating Energy Consumption and Environmental Impact across Cryptocurrency Projects. Energies, 16.10.3390/en16186610 ↗
36. (2025, April 01). Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index. Available online: https://ccaf.io/cbeci/index.
37. (2025, April 01). Bitcoin Network Power Demand. Available online: https://ccaf.io/cbnsi/cbeci.
38. A Research Survey on Applications of Consensus Protocols in Blockchain10.1155/2021/6693731 ↗
39. Proof-of-Stake Consensus Mechanisms for Future Blockchain Networks: Fundamentals, Applications and Opportunities10.1109/ACCESS.2019.2925010 ↗
40. Bada, A.O., Damianou, A., Angelopoulos, C.M., and Katos, V. (2021, January 14–16). Towards a Green Blockchain: A Review of Consensus Mechanisms and their Energy Consumption. Proceedings of the 2021 17th International Conference on Distributed Computing in Sensor Systems (DCOSS), Pafos, Cyprus.10.1109/DCOSS52077.2021.00083 ↗
41. (2025, April 01). CCRI Crypto Carbon Ratings Institute: Determining the Electricity Consumption and Carbon Footprint of Proof of Stake Networks. Available online: https://carbon-ratings.com/dl/whitepaper-pos-methods-2024.
42. (2025, April 01). The Energy Web Chain. Available online: https://www.energyweb.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/EWF-Paper-TheEnergyWebChain-v2-201907-FINAL.pdf.
43. Pineda, M., Jabba, D., Nieto-Bernal, W., and Pérez, A. (2024). Sustainable Consensus Algorithms Applied to Blockchain: A Systematic Literature Review. Sustainability, 16.10.20944/preprints202409.1048.v1 ↗
44. (2025, April 01). Energy Efficiency of Blockchain Technologies. Available online: https://blockchain-observatory.ec.europa.eu/document/download/4e612a85-eac1-44fd-b7b6-bf97e51abaea_en?filename=Energy%20Efficiency%20of%20Blockchain%20Technologies_1_0.pdf&=fi.
45. Quantum of Trust: Overview of Blockchain Technology for Product Authentication in Food and Pharmaceutical Supply Chains10.1016/j.tifs.2025.104892 ↗
46. Melissari, F., Papadakis, A., Chatzitheodorou, D., Tran, D., Schouteten, J., Athanasiou, G., and Zahariadis, T. (2024). Experiences Using Ethereum and Quorum Blockchain Smart Contracts in Dairy Production. J. Sens. Actuator Netw., 13.10.3390/jsan13010006 ↗
47. Fan, C., Lin, C., Khazaei, H., and Musilek, P. (2022). Performance Analysis of Hyperledger Besu in Private Blockchain. Computers, 11.10.1109/DAPPS55202.2022.00016 ↗
48. Islam, M.M., Merlec, M.M., and In, H.P. (2025). Proof of Random Leader: A Fast and Manipulation-Resistant Proof-of-Authority Consensus Algorithm for Permissioned Blockchains Using Verifiable Random Function. IEEE Trans. Serv. Comput., 1–14.10.1109/TSC.2025.3536315 ↗
49. Siam, M.K., Saha, B., Hasan, M.M., Hossain Faruk, M.J., Anjum, N., Tahora, S., Siddika, A., and Shahriar, H. (2025). Securing Decentralized Ecosystems: A Comprehensive Systematic Review of Blockchain Vulnerabilities, Attacks, and Countermeasures and Mitigation Strategies. Future Internet, 17.10.3390/fi17040183 ↗
50. Angelis, S., Aniello, L., Baldoni, R., Lombardi, F., Margheri, A., and Sassone, V. (2018, January 6–9). PBFT vs Proof-of-Authority: Applying the CAP Theorem to Permissioned Blockchain. Proceedings of the Second Italian Conference on Cybersecurity, Milan, Italy.
51. A security and performance analysis of proof-based consensus protocols10.1007/s12243-021-00896-2 ↗
52. Kim, D.S., Igboanusi, I.S., Chijioke Ahakonye, L.A., and Anyanwu, G.O. (2025, January 11–14). Proof-of-Authority-and-Association Consensus Algorithm for IoT Blockchain Networks. Proceedings of the 2025 IEEE International Conference on Consumer Electronics (ICCE), Las Vegas, NV, USA.10.1109/ICCE63647.2025.10930052 ↗
53. Energy-aware proof-of-authority: Blockchain consensus for clustered wireless sensor network10.1016/j.bcra.2024.100211 ↗
54. HDPoA: Honesty-based distributed proof of authority via scalable work consensus protocol for IoT-blockchain applications10.1016/j.comnet.2022.109337 ↗
55. Nazir, A., Singh, M., Destefanis, G., Memon, J., Neykova, R., Kassab, M., and Tonelli, R. (2023, January 21–24). An Optimized Concurrent Proof of Authority Consensus Protocol. Proceedings of the 2023 IEEE International Conference on Software Analysis, Evolution and Reengineering (SANER), Taipa, Macao.10.1109/SANER56733.2023.00105 ↗
56. The benefits of blockchain for digital certificates: A multiple case study analysis10.1016/j.techsoc.2022.102176 ↗
57. Capece, G., Levialdi Ghiron, N., and Pasquale, F. (2020). Blockchain Technology: Redefining Trust for Digital Certificates. Sustainability, 12.10.3390/su12218952 ↗
58. A Systematic Literature Review on Blockchain-Based Systems for Academic Certificate Verification10.1109/ACCESS.2023.3289598 ↗
59. Academic Credential Verification Technique Using Blockchain
60. Design Disclosure for Blockchain-based Application used in Public Education Certificates with Electronic Hashes
61. CertificateChain: Decentralized healthcare training certificate management system using blockchain and smart contracts10.1093/jamiaopen/ooac019 ↗
62. Expedition to the blockchain application potential for higher education institutions10.1016/j.bcra.2024.100203 ↗
63. EduCTX: A Blockchain-Based Higher Education Credit Platform
64. Sharples, M., and Domingue, J. (2016). The Blockchain and Kudos: A Distributed System for Educational Record, Reputation and Reward. Proceedings of the 11th European Conference on Technology Enhanced Learning (EC-TEL), Springer. Available online: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-45153-4_48.10.1007/978-3-319-45153-4_48 ↗
65. Privacy Protected Blockchain Based Architecture and Implementation for Sharing of Students’ Credentials10.1016/j.ipm.2021.102512 ↗
66. Multilateral Personal Portfolio Authentication System Based on Hyperledger Fabric10.1145/3423554 ↗
67. Delgado-von-Eitzen, C., Anido-Rifón, L., and Fernández-Iglesias, M.J. (2021, January 12–15). Blockchain for the Scalable Issuance and Verification of Private Academic Information. Proceedings of the 2021 International Conference on Advanced Learning Technologies (ICALT), Tartu, Estonia.10.1109/ICALT52272.2021.00138 ↗
68. Delgado-von Eitzen, C., Anido-Rifón, L., and Fernández-Iglesias, M.J. (2024). NFTs for the Issuance and Validation of Academic Information that Complies with the GDPR. Appl. Sci., 14.10.3390/app14020706 ↗
69. Sultana, S.A., Rupa, C., Malleswari, R.P., and Gadekallu, T.R. (2023). IPFS-Blockchain Smart Contracts Based Conceptual Framework to Reduce Certificate Frauds in the Academic Field. Information, 14.10.3390/info14080446 ↗
70. Kistaubayev, Y.I., Mutanov, G., Mansurova, M., Saxenbayeva, Z., and Shakan, Y. (2022). Ethereum-Based Information System for Digital Higher Education Registry and Verification of Student Achievement Documents. Future Internet, 15.10.3390/fi15010003 ↗
71. PriFoB: A Privacy-Aware Fog-Enhanced Blockchain-Based System for Global Accreditation and Credential Verification10.1016/j.jnca.2022.103440 ↗
72. Mazzocca, C., Acar, A., Uluagac, S., Montanari, R., Bellavista, P., and Conti, M. (IEEE Commun. Surv. Tutor., 2025). A Survey on Decentralized Identifiers and Verifiable Credentials, IEEE Commun. Surv. Tutor., early access.10.1109/COMST.2025.3543197 ↗
73. DIVA: A DID-based reputation system for secure transmission in VANETs using IOTA10.1016/j.comnet.2024.110332 ↗
74. Mazzocca, C., Acar, A., Uluagac, S., and Montanari, R. (2024, January 14–16). EVOKE: Efficient revocation of verifiable credentials in IoT networks. Proceedings of the 33rd USENIX Conference on Security Symposium, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
75. Biedermann, B., Scerri, M., Kozlova, V., and Ellul, J. (2024, January 19–22). A Systematisation of Knowledge: Connecting European Digital Identities with Web3. Proceedings of the 2024 IEEE International Conference on Blockchain (Blockchain), Copenhagen, Denmark.10.1109/Blockchain62396.2024.00089 ↗
76. Tan, E., Lerouge, E., Du Caju, J., and Du Seuil, D. (2023). Verification of Education Credentials on European Blockchain Services Infrastructure (EBSI): Action Research in a Cross-Border Use Case Between Belgium and Italy. Big Data Cogn. Comput., 7.10.3390/bdcc7020079 ↗
77. Enabling secure health information sharing among healthcare organizations by public blockchain10.1007/s11042-024-18181-4 ↗
78. Corte-Real, A., Nunes, T., and da Cunha, P.R. (2024). Reflections About Blockchain in Health Data Sharing: Navigating a Disruptive Technology. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 21.10.20944/preprints202401.1016.v1 ↗
79. A systematic literature review of the tension between the GDPR and public blockchain systems10.1016/j.bcra.2023.100129 ↗
80. Wang, Z., Chaliasos, S., Qin, K., Zhou, L., Gao, L., Berrang, P., Livshits, B., and Gervais, A. (May, January 30). On How Zero-Knowledge Proof Blockchain Mixers Improve, and Worsen User Privacy. Proceedings of the ACM Web Conference 2023, Austin, TX, USA.10.1145/3543507.3583217 ↗
81. Fekete, D.L., and Kiss, A. (2023). Toward Building Smart Contract-Based Higher Education Systems Using Zero-Knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine. Electronics, 12.10.3390/electronics12030664 ↗
82. Leveraging zero knowledge proofs for blockchain-based identity sharing: A survey of advancements, challenges and opportunities
83. (2025, April 01). OrbitDB Field Manual. Available online: https://github.com/orbitdb/field-manual.
84. (2025, April 01). Infura Official Webpage. Available online: https://docs.infura.io/infura.
85. (2025, April 01). Metamask. Available online: https://docs.metamask.io/guide/.
86. (2025, April 01). Ethers Key Sign. Available online: https://docs.ethers.org/v5/api/utils/signing-key/.
87. (2025, April 01). Etherscan. Available online: https://etherscan.io/.
88. Ethereum: A secure decentralised generalised transaction ledger
89. (2025, June 01). Slither Repository. Available online: https://github.com/crytic/slither.
90. (2025, June 01). Mythril Repository. Available online: https://github.com/ConsenSysDiligence/mythril.
91. Privacy-Preserving Solutions for Blockchain: Review and Challenges10.1109/ACCESS.2019.2950872 ↗
92. (2025, June 01). Access Control OpenZeppelin. Available online: https://docs.openzeppelin.com/contracts/5.x/.
93. Fernández-Caramés, T.M., Froiz-Míguez, I., Blanco-Novoa, O., and Fraga-Lamas, P. (2019). Enabling the Internet of Mobile Crowdsourcing Health Things: A Mobile Fog Computing, Blockchain and IoT Based Continuous Glucose Monitoring System for Diabetes Mellitus Research and Care. Sensors, 19.10.3390/s19153319 ↗
94. User Perspectives on Blockchain Technology: User-Centered Evaluation and Design Strategies for DApps10.1109/ACCESS.2020.3042822 ↗
95. Saldivar, J., Martínez-Vicente, E., Rozas, D., Valiente, M.C., and Hassan, S. (2023, January 23–28). Blockchain (not) for Everyone: Design Challenges of Blockchain-based Applications. Proceedings of the Extended Abstracts of the 2023 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Hamburg, Germany. CHI EA ’23.10.1145/3544549.3585825 ↗
96. Santos, A.F., Marinho, J., and Bernardino, J. (2023). Blockchain-Based Loyalty Management System. Future Internet, 15.10.3390/fi15050161 ↗
97. Performance Evaluation of Blockchain Systems: A Systematic Survey10.1109/ACCESS.2020.3006078 ↗
98. Measuring performances and footprint of blockchains with BCTMark: A case study on Ethereum smart contracts energy consumption10.1007/s10586-021-03441-x ↗
99. Di Ciccio, C., Gabryelczyk, R., García-Bañuelos, L., Hernaus, T., Hull, R., Indihar Štemberger, M., Kő, A., and Staples, M. (2019). Performance and Scalability of Private Ethereum Blockchains. Proceedings of the Business Process Management: Blockchain and Central and Eastern Europe Forum, Springer.10.1007/978-3-030-30429-4 ↗
100. Exploring the use of blockchain in resource-constrained fog computing environments10.1002/spe.3173 ↗