Stop Boiling the Oceans
A Review on Energy Efficient Proof of Work Alternatives
Martijn Comans (TU Delft - Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science)
Olav de Haas (TU Delft - Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science)
Ricardo Jongerius (TU Delft - Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science)
Daan Oudejans (TU Delft - Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science)
Emiel de Smidt (TU Delft - Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science)
Zekeriya Erkin – Mentor (TU Delft - Cyber Security)
Philip Zimmermann Jr – Graduation committee member (TU Delft - Cyber Security)
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Abstract
Bitcoin’s underlying consensus algorithm, Proof of Work, is of inefficient nature. Due to the sheer size that Bitcoin has grown to over the recent years, power consumption has increased so much that the Bitcoin network has been estimated to consume more power than the whole country of Ireland. This paper investigates several alternatives to the Proof of Work consensus algorithm, with a focus on energy efficiency. We found permissioned and permissionless consensus algorithms that offer solutions that consume significantly less energy than Proof of Work.