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This article was originally posted on MyCryptopedia - a trusted educational website created by two UK university students, and founded on their passion for cryptocurrency and blockchain technology.
When it comes to thinking about blockchain technology, one essential element to consider are consensus algorithms. These algorithms play an important role in blockchain architecture, by ensuring that network participants are able to reach consensus as to the shared state of the blockchain.
There are numerous consensus protocols that exist, such as proof-of-work PoW and proof-of-stake PoS , with each protocol representing a different approach as to how blockchain consensus should be achieved in a distributed and trustless environment.
In advancing this discussion, one novel approach that has been proposed is a consensus algorithm known as: The idea behind proof of burn is that, in order for a user to mine in a proof of burn consensus algorithm, they must burn their cryptocurrency.
Users do this by sending their coins to a verifiably unspendable address. Once coins are sent to this address, they can no longer be accessed or spent. Because proof of burn transactions are recorded on the blockchain, it can be demonstrated that the coins can no longer be used, which means that the user can then be rewarded.
The concept behind proof of burn can properly be understood when it is compared to the already popular and existing consensus algorithm, PoW. With PoW, miners are required to invest in equipment and electricity in order to mine blocks.
Effectively, the right to mine blocks in a PoW system is directly linked to the monetary cost that the miner is required to take on. In the case of PoW, that cost is monetary, as miners must pay for hardware and electricity. However, the disadvantage of PoW systems is that they can consume a significant amount of energy.
For example, it is predicted that Bitcoin PoW mining could consume as much electricity as Denmark by The innovative element of proof of burn is that it reshapes the type of cost that miners must take on in order to mine blocks. Instead of taking on costs associated with electricity and hardware as in PoW mining, miners in proof of burn burn their coins in order to mine a block. Thus, proof of burn miners are still taking on a cost, however, no resources are consumed other than the burned underlying asset.
This means that the problem of energy consumption and environmental impact, that is inherent in PoW systems, is not apparent in the proof of burn consensus model. Proof of burn is an interesting algorithm that adopts a novel approach to distributed, trustless consensus. As of now, there are a few cryptocurrency projects that have adopted the proof of burn consensus algorithm, such as Slimcoin and Counterparty.
It is likely that we will continue to see the introduction of multiple consensus algorithms, as projects strive to design an algorithm that effectively balances the interests of competing stakeholders within their localised ecosystems.
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