Grey system theory in engineering: a bibliometrics and visualization analysis
Grey Systems: Theory and Application
ISSN: 2043-9377
Article publication date: 3 November 2022
Issue publication date: 16 November 2022
Abstract
Purpose
The year 2022 marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the grey system theory (GST), which has been widely applied in the engineering field. This paper aims to systematically identify the achievements, hotspots, knowledge structure and emerging trends in this field.
Design/methodology/approach
A bibliometrics analysis was conducted on relevant publications retrieved from Web of Science (WoS) using CiteSpace and MapEquation. A statistical analysis of the collected 3,384 papers was completed. Three networks, including a co-occurrence network, cooperation network and co-citation network, were obtained to draw knowledge structure, hotspots and research frontiers.
Findings
The top four applied engineering fields are engineering electrical electronics, computer science artificial intelligence, engineering multi-disciplinary and automation control system. In total, 65 countries have engaged in this field, and China has occupied a leading position, with the largest number of articles published and the widest cooperation with other countries. The USA, United Kingdom (UK) and China Taiwan also contribute a lot. The Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics and Professor Liu Sifeng have a core position in the cooperation network. More hotspots appear in the last ten years. Regarding the emerging trends, the combination of theoretical models and practical engineering problems has attracted more attention. Besides, the application of GST in environment protection and the integration of the GST and intelligent algorithm became more popular.
Originality/value
The comprehensive bibliometrics analysis and visualization demonstration were conducted, presenting the interdisciplinary characteristics, major research topics and research frontiers in this field.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This work was supported in part by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 71801127, 72271124, 72171120, 72071111, 71871117); China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (No. 2019TQ0150), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (No. NS2022075).
Citation
Tao, L., Liang, A., Xie, N. and Liu, S. (2022), "Grey system theory in engineering: a bibliometrics and visualization analysis", Grey Systems: Theory and Application, Vol. 12 No. 4, pp. 723-743. https://doi.org/10.1108/GS-06-2022-0059
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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