Identifying influential countries in air pollution control technologies: A social network analysis approach

Abstract

Clarifying the spatial correlation network of country–level air pollution control technology (APCT) is essential for transregional collaborative emission reduction in global warming. Previous research mainly focused on identifying the network structures of green technology linkages in a single country or region. In reality, cross–border technological cooperation has become a strategy for countries to achieve technological breakthroughs, and non–adjacent countries can be interconnected. Based on 217,392 patents, this study uses the Social Network Analysis method and Quadratic Assignment Procedure to discuss the spatio-temporal evolution and influence mechanisms of 57 countries’ APCT spatial correlation network from 1990 to 2020. The results indicate the following: (1) The network density in APCT decreased from 0.428 to 0.355 between 1990 and 2020, and the overall network presents prominent core–periphery structural features. The developing countries accounted for 44.44% of the core area countries. (2) The United States and Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, China, and Japan are at the center of the Americas, Europe, and Asia. (3) Narrowing the gap in greenhouse gas emissions in manufacturing industries and construction contributes to forming potential routes of multinational cooperation; however, the role of geographical distance becomes insignificant (0.282). Lastly, a multicenter knowledge flow network should facilitate global knowledge transfer, absorption, and sharing.