Energy–carbon integrated optimization scheduling method for IES targeting load-side carbon emission responsibility quantification

Driven by the continued implementation of “dual-carbon” objectives, the Integrated Energy System (IES) provides a techno-economically promising paradigm for achieving multi-energy complementarity and low-carbon emission reduction. Nevertheless, most existing IES dispatch studies prioritize the coordinated optimization of multi-energy flows and provide insufficient model granularity to support spatiotemporal carbon tracing and responsibility allocation during decision making. To address this gap, in this paper, an optimal coordinated energy–carbon scheduling method is established based on the concept of nodal carbon potential. First, the operation behavior of an electricity–gas–thermal multi-energy network is mathematically modelled, through which the allowable operation range of IES can be analytically depicted. Second, following the carbon flow theory, the nodal carbon potential is introduced as a decision variable to characterize the propagation of carbon emissions within the network, thereby mapping actual carbon emissions from the source side to the load side. Finally, a 14-7-6 electricity-gas–heat coupled energy system is employed as a case study to validate the effectiveness of the proposed method in minimizing the IES’s operational carbon cost. Simulation results show that, after applying the proposed method, total operating cost of the system are reduced by 9.4%. In addition, by introducing the nodal carbon potential as a variable, the method provides a more detailed representation of the carbon emission distribution and enhances the system’s low-carbon scheduling capability.