Scientific Cooperation Network in Innovations in the use of Biopolymers in Civil Construction

Abstract

The search for innovative technologies for the use of materials from renewable resources to replace conventional materials has been a constant issue. The number of scientific publications on the use of biopolymers by the civil construction industry has grown over time. On the other hand, cooperation in the exchange of knowledge and resources has been found as one of the solutions to overcome relevant obstacles to scientific and technological development. Thus, the objective of this study was to identify and characterize the cooperation network formed between the various actors involved in scientific production on innovations based on the use of biopolymers by the civil construction industry. The cooperation network was characterized using the Social Network Analysis method (SNA). The study showed that in the scientific cooperation network, Ilhan Chang and Michael D. Lepech appear as the most important authors, the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia and Stanford University are the strongest organizations, and Malaysia is the country with the most significant participation.