The theory of carbon emission flow(CEF)provides a new perspective for the allocation of carbon emission responsibility in power systems. Based on the fact that the carbon emission intensity of a node only depends on the CEF related information of its adjacent nodes and branches

this paper proposes a recursive calculation method of CEF in power systems. The basic principle of the proposed recursive CEF calculation method is firstly elaborated and its calculation process is provided. Then

the characteristics and applicability of the recursive method and the existing direct method are analyzed. By combining the two methods

a coordinated calculation procedure is proposed. Finally

the solution process of the recursive method is illustrated based on a simple power system. The case studies of IEEE 24-bus system and the Nordic 2 383-bus system verify the effectiveness of the proposed recursive method in the actual power systems.