Sustainability, Big Data and Mathematical Techniques: A Bibliometric Review

Abstract

This article has reviewed international research, up to the first half of 2021, focused on sustainability, big data and the mathematical techniques used for its analysis. In addition, a study of the spatial component (city, region, nation and beyond) of the works has been carried out and an analysis has been made of which Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have received the most attention. A bibliometric analysis and a fractal cluster analysis were performed on the papers published in the Web of Science. The results show a continuous increase in the number of published articles and citations over the whole period, demonstrating a growing interest in this topic. China, the United States and India are the most productive countries and there are more papers at the regional level. It has been found that the environmental dimension is the most studied and the least studied is the social dimension. The mathematical techniques used in the empirical work are mainly regression analysis, neural networks and multi-criteria decision methods. SDG9 and SDG11 are the most worked on. The trend shows a convergence in recent years towards big data applied to supply chains, Industry 4.0 and the achievement of sustainable cities.