3.1. Number of Publications per Year
Below, a series of data is displayed, which shows the status of the research activity about 3E with reference to the results of the WoS and Scopus databases in the 21st century.
WoS opens the new century with the article entitled Energy relations of gas estimated from flare radiation in Nigeria [
60], in which the economic and environmental impact of oil extraction in Nigeria is studied. Scopus, on the other hand, includes, as its first article for the period, the work entitled Food security, agricultural subsidies, energy, and the environment. A process of ‘glocalization’ in Sri Lanka [
61], in which the interaction of the political dilemma in the areas of food security, agricultural subsidies, energy consumption, and the environment in the process of ‘glocalization’ in Sri Lanka are analysed.
Throughout the study period, it is observed that the scientific contribution that was collected in Scopus is higher than that of WoS in terms of the number of articles and citations, with the only exception of 2016, in which the latter is slightly higher. The evolution of the h-index follows a similar pattern, with WoS being higher in 2007. On the other hand, the ratio of scientific production (represented by the number of citations per article) does not follow such a clearly defined path. However, there is convergence in the number of articles that are indexed in each of the databases by the end of the period (
Table 2).
With consideration of the total number of articles in both databases, the trend is positive, exponentially growing in recent years, and even surpassing 400 articles published in 2018 on the Scopus database. The dynamics of WoS with respect to this issue is positive throughout the period, only decreasing in 2004. The Scopus trend, on the other hand, shows several moments of decreasing scientific contribution: in 2004, 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016. However, the overall positive evolution of this factor indicates that research into the interrelationship between the economy, energy, and the environment is a safe bet, and currently at a high point in terms of the number of studies being published on this issue (
Figure 2 and
Figure 3).
The evolution of the number of citations does not present as stable a path as in the previous variable, drawing an inverted U shape. The highest peak was in 2009 and 2011 for Scopus and 2010 for WoS, decreasing in recent years. The most quoted article throughout this period in WoS and Scopus is the work, A class of non-precious metal composite catalysts for fuel cells [
62], with 1477 and 1531 citations, respectively (
Figure 4).
3.6. Linked Areas: Clustering 3E
In order to have a better understanding of the evolution of the literature from 2001 to 2018, a fractional counting cluster analysis of keywords throughout the study period has been carried out. The different configurations of the clusters can be observed in
Figure 5 and
Figure 6, and they also show how the main and central topics have changed.
The articles published during 2001 are distributed into three clusters, with the term
Sustainability linking them (
Figure 5). The first cluster includes: cost effectiveness, Czech Republic, environmental assessment, water, and national accounting; the second cluster: construction materials, governance, developing countries, public policy, and technology transfer; and, the third one: environmental protection, energy consumption, and transport policy, all being within the geographical scope of the Czech Republic and China.
The following two years follow a similar group structure, with a greater distribution in 2003: four groups in 2002 as compared to 11 in 2003. The 2002 groups show the incorporation of new elements in the 3E research field, such as logistics, structural change, land use, environmental impact, energy, sustainable development, carbon dioxide, and hydrogen economy. In 2003, energy was the central axis of the documents, being closely related to the environment in models of bottom-up approach. The same cluster also includes keywords, such as integrated econometric models, welfare, or trade reforms, all being framed within the geographical scope of China. The economy, on the other hand, is found in another cluster, along with terms, such as biomechanics or energy efficiency.
There was a variation in the distribution of the research in 2004, with the predominance of two large clusters that are united by the concept of sustainable development. The first cluster includes elements, such as cost-benefit analysis, energy analysis, and quality. The second cluster focuses on the value chain, the input-output technique, the explicit integration of economy, energy, and environment and industrial district, focusing the issue in countries, such as Italy and the USA. In 2005, sustainable development continued to be the central trend in the relationship between economy, environment, and environment. Six clusters were identified, in which biomass energy is related to environmental conservation, energy policies, renewable and rural energies, as well as environmental management or the analysis of life cycle assessment in the territories of China and the European Union.
In the following year, the importance of the economy was greater within the dimension of 3E, while sustainable development continued to be the central concept. Keywords, such as energy efficiency, taxes on coal and emissions, as well as biomass, renewable energy sources, climate change, Jevons paradox, or eco-efficiency within New Zealand and Turkey revolve around it. In 2007, there was a convergence between the three concepts of 3E, surrounded by elements, such as the agricultural economy, biomass, hydrogen, energy efficiency, gasification, carbon dioxide emissions, production of biohydrogen, or energy in the geographical areas of China and India.
The scenario drawn in 2008 and 2009 is very similar to that of 2007, although the importance of energy is lower when compared to the presence of the environment and the economy in those years’ articles. New concepts that were incorporated in those years include wind energy, research and development policies, strategic planning, exergy analysis, uncertainty, and the price of carbon emissions in the Balkans, Europe, Asia, and India. Similar to 2008, 2009 saw a waning of the importance of the economy with respect to energy and the environment, as well as a lesser presence of sustainable development. Newer elements in 3E include the analysis of the environmental impact of transport, critical discursive analysis of ecological modernization, deforestation, biodiesel, biofuel, and ecological footprint, all being framed in countries such as China, Japan, or the African continent.
In 2010 (
Figure 6), there was an increase in the importance of the elements of 3E, together with the concept of sustainable development. In this period, new factors appear, such as the change in the use of agricultural land, the dangers of climate change, the energy footprint, ecological modernisation, greenhouse gas, environmental strategy, and the responsibility of consumers and pressure groups on the state of the environment. The main territories at this time were China, Japan, Denmark, Europe, and Africa. In 2011, the environment was the main element of 3E. Sustainability and climate change are at the same level in terms of presence, while aspects such as renewable energies or emissions management appear in the research to a greater extent than in previous periods. In addition, the geographical scope of the studies broadened to include territories, such as Azerbaijan and the United Arab Emirates. In 2012, the concept of sustainability once more gained space, along with the terms biomass, biodiversity, efficiency, and performance. Economy, environment, and energy are at the same level of presence, but behind sustainability. The number of researches that were carried out in China increased, as well as those that were focused on developing countries.
The following year, 2013, shows a similar structure to that of 2009, with a recovery of the concept of sustainable development. It is in this year that the green economy had greater presence in the research scenario, including terms, such as recycling or energy efficiency. 2014 stands out for the high prominence that China acquires in the investigation on 3E. The concept of environment is at the same level, to the detriment of energy and economy. Sustainability and energy efficiency also have a high presence, and it is at this time that solar energy is analysed to a greater extent. In that year, there was a distancing of the concept of economy in relation to energy and the environment, which had a greater presence in the research landscape than the first. In fact, the greatest division takes place between economy and energy, with the environment being the connecting element. China continues to have a high presence, as well as a growing number of articles analysing the uncertainty, performance, and management of energy efficiency.
Something similar happened the following year, 2015, where energy and the environment are more closely related than the economy, which is less relevant. Along with the first two elements, sustainable development, sustainability, consumption, economic growth, and CO2 emissions also stand out, with China and the USA being the main countries under investigation. In 2016 and 2017, the economy was once again linked to the other two components of 3E, with a concentration of keywords around 3E. Finally, energy and sustainable development predominate in 2018. Factors, such as the environmental curve of Kuznets, the carbon footprint, the circular economy, and the optimization of the efficiency of greenhouse gas emissions are also present. These coincide with the latest trends that were observed in the cluster analysis for the whole period (
Figure 7).
The analysis of the 3E keyword trend shows that the most prominent common elements were sustainable development and sustainability. The inclusion of this in the analysis shows the different clusters that link them and the latest trends.
With regard to the clusters, these are distributed in six groups. The first of them relates to economic growth in the circular economy, the efficient use and consumption of energy, and the management of emissions, all being framed in the geographical scope of China and in the methodology of surrounding data analysis. The second group focuses more on the field of economic development, climate change, and greenhouse gas emissions, with its methodological element being the analysis of the environmental curve of Kuznets. The following two groups follow the line of climate change, identifying new energy sources, such as biomass or biofuel, and including elements, such as green economy, development, and sustainable energy, as well as the territory of Turkey. The fifth encompasses the concept of sustainability and energy, while the last cluster integrates innovation with development policies and dynamic systems.
Figure 8 shows the latest trends in research with the integration of energy, economy, and environment terms in a single cluster analysis. An initial reflection in these trends indicates that the Kuznets environmental curve is used under the sustainable development approach. Currently, the enveloping analysis of data is used to study the impact of variables, such as carbon dioxide emissions or energy consumption on economic growth. On the other hand, due to the absence of some terms that were commonly used in previous years, such as petrol, pollution, or even some that are lagging behind, such as climate change, which is in accordance with this cluster analysis, future research on 3E may emphasise on Circular Economy and Green Economy as the main solution for achieving sustainable development.