Blockchain-Enabled Sustainable and Secure Hydrogen Supply Chains: Integrating Cybersecurity, Evolutionary Game Theory, and Fuzzy Decision-Making for Decarbonized Energy Systems

Abstract

The global transition toward low-carbon and climate-resilient energy systems has intensified scholarly and policy interest in hydrogen as a cornerstone of future decarbonization strategies. Green hydrogen, produced using renewable energy sources, offers particular promise for hard-to-abate sectors such as heavy industry, long-haul transport, and energy-intensive manufacturing. However, the realization of hydrogen’s sustainability potential is fundamentally contingent upon the design, governance, and security of its supply chains. These supply chains are characterized by high capital intensity, technological uncertainty, multi-actor coordination challenges, and increasing digital interdependence. In this context, blockchain technology has emerged as a transformative digital infrastructure capable of enhancing transparency, trust, traceability, and incentive alignment across complex energy value networks. At the same time, blockchain integration introduces new cybersecurity risks, governance dilemmas, and adoption barriers that require rigorous theoretical and methodological examination.

This research develops a comprehensive, theory-driven analysis of blockchain-enabled hydrogen supply chains by synthesizing insights from sustainable supply chain management, cybersecurity studies, evolutionary game theory, and fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making. Drawing strictly on the provided scholarly references, the article constructs an integrated conceptual framework that explains how blockchain can simultaneously mitigate supply chain risks, enable fair value distribution, support decarbonization objectives, and reshape institutional trust mechanisms. The study elaborates on how evolutionary game dynamics among supply chain actors influence blockchain adoption decisions, how fuzzy analytic hierarchy process methods can be used to evaluate sustainability and risk trade-offs, and how cybersecurity considerations fundamentally condition system resilience in blockchain-based Internet of Things and energy environments.

Methodologically, the research adopts a qualitative, theory-building approach grounded in interpretive synthesis and analytical generalization. Rather than empirical measurement or mathematical modeling, the study relies on deep conceptual elaboration, comparative reasoning, and cross-disciplinary integration. The results demonstrate that blockchain-enabled hydrogen supply chains can enhance environmental, social, and economic sustainability, but only under specific governance configurations that balance decentralization with regulatory oversight and technological security. The discussion highlights critical limitations related to scalability, interoperability, energy consumption, and behavioral uncertainty, while also identifying future research directions involving hybrid governance models, incentive-compatible smart contracts, and cross-border policy harmonization. The article concludes by positioning blockchain not as a technological panacea, but as an institutional innovation whose sustainability impacts depend on strategic design, stakeholder alignment, and long-term socio-technical co-evolution.