Abstract: This paper presents a dynamic Byzantine fault-tolerant consensus algorithm based on reputation and clustering. The existing practical algorithms lack a response mechanism for joining or exiting nodes, leading to decreased consensus efficiency with a large number of nodes. To address this issue, the proposed algorithm utilizes a clustering algorithm to divide nodes into K consensus regions, improving efficiency when more nodes participate in consensus. Additionally, K reliable proxy nodes are selected based on high reputation, while low reputation nodes are eliminated to reduce the probability of Byzantine nodes becoming main nodes. The node classification process combines the reputation evaluation algorithm to select K proxy nodes, enhancing system stability and security. Simulation results demonstrate that compared to PBFT, the proposed algorithm supports dynamic node joining and exiting, with lower communication cost, transaction delay, and higher throughput. It also exhibits better fault tolerance and scalability.

Key words: blockchain, Byzantine fault tolerance, reputation evaluation, K-medoids, consensus mechanism