Is Ethereum Better or Worse Off as a result of the Merge?

    Introduction to Ethereum

    1. Ethereum are Layer 1 blockchain networks, like Bitcoin, Litecoin, Algorand and Avalanche.
    2. Layer 1 network is a blockchain in the decentralised ecosystem where smart contracts can be deployed onto, whereas a Layer 2 protocol is a third-party integration that may be used in conjunction with a Layer 1 blockchain.
    3. As the core networks of their ecosystem, Layer 1 refers to a simple base blockchain network. Decentralized apps are built on top of Layer 1s by developers. Consider the internet to be an Layer 1, and Instagram to be one of the apps built on the internet.

    Introduction to the Merge

    1. The Merge is the most significant upgrade in Ethereum's history, and it took place on September 15th, 2022.
    2. The Merge will mark the end of Ethereum's proof-of-work era and the complete transition to proof-of-stake, paving the way for future scaling upgrades.
    3. Some real-time post Ethereum Merge metrics can be found on Ethereum’s Ultrasound Money.
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    1. For the majority of the days before and after the Merge, the daily minimum transaction per block on Ethereum is around 1 to 3.
    2. The average number of transactions per Ethereum block is approximately 185.5773.
    3. After the merge, the average transaction per block on Ethereum fell from around 180 to 160, implying that the average Ethereum block size shrank.

    How about the time lag between blocks now that we know the number of transactions per block on Ethereum?

    1. The average time between Ethereum blocks is approximately 13.74 seconds.
    2. After the merge, the average time between Ethereum blocks decreased from around 14 to 12.
    3. As a result, we cannot conclude that the Ethereum blockchain currently underperforms in terms of block and transaction performance because it has a lower average transaction per block but a shorter time lag between blocks following the Merge.
    4. It is worth noting that, following the Merge, Ethereum's daily maximum time between blocks decreased significantly, while the minimum time per block increased, eventually converging to around the average of 12.
    1. TPS measures the ability of a system to complete work per second. It is a measure of the number of transactions that a network is capable of processing each second.
    2. The average TPS per hour on Ethereum is around 183.99.
    3. Average TPS per hour on Ethereum has also declined after the Merge, from around 180 to 155 after the merge.
    4. This suggests that what Ethereum blockchain currently underperforms in terms of TPS as compared to before the Merge.
    5. Due to the fact of the current bear market, Ethereum may see fewer transactions per block and TPS per hour.
    6. As a result, we will need more time to test the more accurate block and transaction performance on Ethereum across different cycles.

    Methodology

    1. In this dashboard, we will explore if Ethereum’s block and transaction performance before and after the Merge.
    2. The time between blocks on Ethereum is obtained using the ethereum.core.fact_blocks table.
    3. The ethereum.core.fact_transactions table are used to obtain the number of transactions per block and transaction per second (TPS) by hour on Ethereum.
    4. Analysis in this dashboard starts from June 1st 2022.

    The Number of Transactions per Block

    The Time between Blocks

    The transaction per second (TPS) by hour

    Conclusion

    1. Table of Summary of Block and Transaction Performance of Ethereum
    MetricsEthereumComparison to Pre Merge
    Average Number of Transactions per Block185.5773Underperform
    Average Time between Blocks13.74 secondsOverperform
    Average transaction per second (TPS) by hour183.99Underperform
    1. In comparison to before the merge, Ethereum underperforms in terms of average number of transactions per block and average TPS per hour.
    2. However, in terms of average time per block, Ethereum outperforms before the Merge.
    3. The current bear market may also result in fewer transactions per block and TPS per hour on Ethereum.
    4. As a result, we will require more time to track across different cycles in order to test the more accurate block and transaction performance on Ethereum.

    This dashboard was created by banbannard

    I hope you learned something new about Block and Transaction Performance of Ethereum Pre and Post Merge!

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    Sections in this dashboard

    1. Number of transactions per block
    2. Time between blocks
    3. Transaction per second (TPS) by hour