Dr. Grijalva is a pioneer on decentralized power system architectures and a leading researcher on renewable energy integration and grid cyber-security. He has been the principal investigator for research projects under the U.S. Department of Energy, ARPA-E, EPRI, PSERC, NSF, several National Laboratories, and numerous industry sponsors. He has published 250 peer-reviewed papers and serves as Associate Editor for the IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics
Dr. Grijalva has combined background in computer science and electric power systems. He received his Electrical Engineer degree from EPN-Ecuador in 1994 and his MSc Certificate in Information Systems from ESPE-Ecuador in 1997. Dr. Grijalva’s MS (1999) and PhD (2002) degrees in Electrical and Computer Engineering are from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he also completed a post-doctoral program in Energy Systems.
- Postdoctoral Fellow, Energy Systems, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, 2004
- Ph.D., Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, 2002
- M.Sc., Data Science, University of Texas at Austin, 2025
- M.Sc., Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, 1999
- M.Sc. Diploma, Information Systems Management, Escuela Politécnica del Ejército (ESPE–Ecuador), 1997
- Electrical Engineer, Escuela Politécnica Nacional (EPN–Ecuador), 1994
Grijalva’s research focuses on applications of control theory, optimization, and machine learning to power systems and energy networks. His work addresses challenges in smart grids, distributed generation, energy management, and system resilience, utilizing interdisciplinary approaches to improve the performance and reliability of modern power systems under dynamic operating conditions.
Grijalva’s teaching interests include core electrical and computer engineering topics at undergraduate and graduate levels, emphasizing power systems, smart grids, and control systems. He focuses on providing students with a solid foundation in system modeling, optimization, and real-time control to prepare them for advanced studies and professional careers in electrical energy systems and related areas.
- Georgia Tech ECE Outstanding Faculty Award
- Great Minds in STEM National Achievement Award
- ARPA-E More Than Smart Grid Disruptor Award
- IBM Faculty Award.
- Co-Founder and Chairman, ProsumerGrid, Inc.
- Former Center Director, National Renewable Energy Laboratory
- Former Senior Software Developer, PowerWorld Corporation
- Former Deparment Head, Centro Nacional de Control de Energia (CENACE)
- Fromer Member, NIST Federal Smart Grid Advisory Committee
- ME Oliver, O Chapman, S Grijalva, DC Matisoff, M Ramadhani, A West, Managing zero-marginal-cost, intermittent renewable energy: A survey of the engineering, economic, and policy challenges, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 226, 116334, 2026
- · S Grijalva, VJ Mooney, TM Lewis, A King, A Allahverdi, J Keller, K Hutto, ..., Experimental Evaluation of a Novel Hardware-Based Authentication Solution for Securing Electrical Grids, IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications, 2025
- · A West, S Grijalva, Regenerative Energy Community Modeling Considering Distribution Network Resilience, 2025 IEEE Electrical Power and Energy Conference (EPEC), 305–309, 2025
- · S Yi, S Grijalva, A Multi-Sensor Drone Detection Framework for Securing Power Substations, 2025 IEEE Electrical Power and Energy Conference (EPEC), 194–198, 2025
-
· X An, C Crozier, SS Dey, S Grijalva, Combined Bound Tightening on McCormick Relaxations of AC Optimal Power Flow, 2025 57th North American Power Symposium (NAPS), 1–6, 2025
More Research
Google Scholar Link