Dr. Guohui Yuan is the program manager for the Systems Integration (SI) team in the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO), which supports research, development, and demonstration of technologies and solutions for reliable, resilient, and secure integration of solar energy on the nation’s electricity grid. His team collaborates with other DOE program offices in crosscutting initiatives including Grid Modernization Initiative (GMI), Cybersecurity, and Advanced Research on Integrated Energy Systems (ARIES).

Dr. Yuan joined SETO as a technical advisor in 2011. Prior to the DOE, he held leadership positions at several industry-leading clean technology startups, including CURRENT Group, GridPoint, and WaveCrest Labs. Early in his career, he worked at COMSAT Labs as a systems scientist in satellite communications. He is a recognized thought leader and has many technical publications. He holds nine patents on electric vehicle propulsion systems.

Dr. Yuan holds a B.S. degree from Tsinghua University, Beijing, China and a Ph.D. from the University of Maryland, College Park, both in physics. He has also taken leadership trainings at MIT Sloan and at the Wharton School of University of Pennsylvania.

Company: Boston Government Services

Dr. Bishnu Bhattarai is a technology manager for the System Integration Team of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Energy Technology Office (SETO). He joined SETO in January 2022 and manages a portfolio of projects that enable the flexible, reliable, and secure integration of solar energy on the nation's electricity grid.

Prior to this role, Bishnu worked in different capacities at U.S. National Laboratories (LLNL, PNNL, and INL) for more than 6 years. His past work focused on modeling, simulation, and large-scale integration of distributed energy resources (DER) into power grids; regional studies on interdependencies among various sectors (power, communication, electricity market, and transportation sectors); and development of a roadmap for energy storage and DERs in achieving a zero-emission power grid. His work also included demand response and transactive energy systems to enable customer participate in various transmission and distribution system level grid services.

Dr. Bhattarai received his Ph.D. from Aalborg University, Denmark in electrical engineering, where he researched the integrated energy system (electrical, thermal, and transportation) and its impacts at the distribution system level. He was a recipient of the Gold Medal from the “President of Nepal” in 2011, the Green Talent Award from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research in 2017, and Best Reviewer Awards from “Elsevier IJEPES” in 2017 and “IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid” in 2018 and 2019. He is serving as an editor for IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid, and the Technical Committee Program Chair of IEEE PES Smart Building, Loads, and Customer Systems technical committee.

Company: ManTech International

Kemal Çelik joined the Systems Integration team in 2015.  He started working at PG&E in San Francisco after completing his graduate studies in 1991.  He worked as a Vice President of Product Management at Nexant for 18 years until recently moving to D.C.

Kemal has more than 25 years of professional experience working on a wide range of projects from analytical electric distribution and transmission network applications to web-based demand-side management applications, energy market solutions and distribution planning tools. He worked on electric utility control center applications as well as computer modeling, coding, and implementation of analytical algorithms for power transmission and distribution networks. Kemal managed the development and implementation of several enterprise applications for demand-side management and energy efficiency programs at several different utilities; transmission revenue auction markets at Independent System Operators across the U.S.; and most recently a quasi-static time series near real-time analysis tool for distribution networks.

Dr. Amilcar “Alex” Chavez joined the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) Systems Integration team in August 2023, bringing with him over 30 years of experience in power systems, energy efficiency, project management, and manufacturing. 

Dr. Chavez began his career at Compania Anonima de Administration y Fomento Electrico (CADAFE)—a transmission system operator (TSO)—as a high-voltage protections engineer and leaving the company as district manager. Later, he started his own engineering firm working on automation and project management for the energy and manufacturing industries. Most recently, he served as a transmission planning expert at Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) and a power manager at the Bureau of Reclamation. 

Dr. Chavez served as a co-chair for the Federal Columbia River Power System, an organization which funds and coordinates hydropower capital investments for United States Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Reclamation, and BPA in the Pacific Northwest. He also served as co-chair for the energy efficiency team at CertainTeed Saint-Gobain, working on lean manufacturing and energy efficiency. 

Dr. Chavez received his B.S. in electrical engineering from the Universidad de Oriente Venezuela and Ph.D. in civil and environmental engineering from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He is a Licensed Professional Electrical Engineer in Wyoming and a Professional Project Manager with certification from Project Management Institute.

Dr. Julia Lee joined the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) in January 2024 as a technology manager on the systems integration team. Julia brings her industry research experience from her previous roles at Samsung, where she conducted defect analysis by analyzing large sets of image data , managed the development of an automation system in partnership with subcontractors, and administered and managed an industry-academic cooperation on developing machine learning algorithms that can be integrated into the system. Her expertise extends to the comprehensive analysis of big datasets in both industrial and academic contexts, including tasks such as analyzing four-dimensional datasets from live samples.  

Julia received her Ph.D. and M.S. in fluid and thermal sciences from Brown University, where she focused on designing and developing experimental research on cellular viability imaging using dynamic light scattering optical coherence tomography. She received her M.S. in mechanical engineering and B.S. in mechanical engineering and industrial engineering from Korea University.

Dr. Marissa Morales-Rodriguez is a scientist, native to Puerto Rico, currently working as a systems integration technology manager for the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO). Marissa joined SETO in 2021 as a contractor, where she managed a project portfolio supporting the research and development of high-impact technologies and solutions to enable the reliable, resilient, and secure integration of solar energy into the nation's electric grid. 

Prior to this role, she served as a principal investigator and project manager at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) for over 11 years. At ORNL, her research focused on the development of advanced cyber-physical sensors, communications, data analytics, and controls to enhance the security, reliability, and resilience of the power grid and energy systems. 

Marissa received her B.S. and M.S. degrees in chemistry from the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez, where she focused on semiconductor research and remote sensing technologies. She earned her Ph.D. in energy science and engineering from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Marissa is the author or coauthor of numerous peer-reviewed publications, a recipient of U.S. patents for her inventions, and a winner of a 2019 R&D 100 Award. 

Dexter Newton joined the Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) as a technical advisor on the Systems Integration team. Dexter is a utility and renewable energy professional with over 20 years of experience working in grid modernization, outside plant construction, and utility systems operations. Prior to joining SETO, Dexter worked as an independent energy consultant, working on a wide range of sustainable energy projects involving organizations such as the United Nations Development Programme, the Global Environment Facility, and the World Bank.   

Dexter also spent several years managing utility systems and outside plant construction at Consolidated Edison in New York. During his time there, he supported system operators in high-hazard emergency operation of the 4kV, 13kV, and 27kV electric grid. Dexter’s experience in field operations involved overseeing the day-to-day activity on the overhead and underground distribution networks, substation and high-tension switching, outside plant maintenance, fault locating, emergency storm recovery, and storm hardening and resilient construction.   

Dexter holds M.S. degrees in technology management from New York University Tandon School of Engineering and electrical engineering from Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute, as well as a B.S. in electrical engineering from Clarkson University.

Company: Boston Government Services 

Robert (Bob) Reedy joined the Systems Integration team of SETO in January 2020. Prior to his role, he served as an associate instructor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering department and program director for grid integration at the University of Central Florida (UCF). His involvement with solar energy began as the director of systems research at the Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC) of UCF in early 2007.

Previously, he spent four years with Georgia Transmission Corporation as a research manager and then as the manager of transmission line design. He also served as vice president and chief operating officer of the North American subsidiary of Turbec AB, a Swedish manufacturer of microturbine combined heat and power systems. Other experience includes marketing manager for The Energy Authority, Incorporated and most of his 23 years with the Lakeland Department of Electric and Water Utilities as director of the engineering and operations group. This earlier work has given him extensive experience in the larger utility industry with a technical focus in system protection and control, and operations and distribution design, with responsibilities in energy marketing, financing, and business planning. Most recently, Bob has been heavily involved with the control and protection of grid-interactive photovoltaics and storage, with particular attention to the enhancement of grid stability, reliability, and resiliency through utility control of advanced distributed inverters.

Bob earned his Master of Science in Electrical Engineering and Bachelor of Electrical Engineering from Auburn University, following the power systems analysis track. He later received an MBA from Florida Southern College, with a focus on production economics. He is a Licensed Professional Engineer in Florida.

Tommy first became interested in solar energy when his professor at Brown University introduced him to the book, Soft Energy Paths, by Amory Lovins, founder of the Rocky Mountain Institute. Tommy also shared news articles about a solar "Power Tower" that was being built in the Mojave Desert—what later became Solar One—which inspired him to do his college research project on heliostat design.

Tommy joined the Energy Department right out of college, and spent 14 years in the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission before joining the Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) in 1994. Having jobs ranging from solar budget manager to operations lead to concentrating solar power (CSP) lab research and development manager, Tommy currently serves as a technical project officer.

Dr. John Seuss is a technology manager for the Systems Integration team, joining the Solar Energy Technologies Office in February 2020. Prior to this role, he was a research and development engineer for S&C Electric Company in Chicago, IL. There he developed new distribution automation and protection schemes for medium-voltage switchgear and protective relays. In this capacity, he contributed to the discussion on the role of adaptive protection in future distribution networks with changing topologies and high penetrations of distributed energy resources. John began his career in power systems as a high-voltage substation field engineer, deploying and testing transmission and distribution relay protection schemes.

Dr. Seuss received both his Ph.D. and B.S. in electrical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he researched the impact of inverter-based resources on power systems and how different control schemes for smart inverters can maximize the ability of distribution feeders to host photovoltaics. He received his M.S. in electrical engineering from the University of Central Florida, with a focus in control systems, where he also researched photovoltaic system integration.

Company: Boston Government Services

Dr. Yi Yang is a technology manager for the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO). She joined SETO in January 2022 and works with the Systems Integration team. Prior to this role, she was a senior engineering specialist with Eaton Research Labs for over 12 years in Golden, CO. Yi served as principal investigator and technical lead for multiple government-funded programs, and led strategic innovation and research in multiple areas, including building load intelligent power and energy monitoring, diagnostics, control, and management technologies; and power distribution protection and control for DERM/Microgrid interconnections.

Yi received her Ph.D. in electrical and computer engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2010. Her research focused on a novel and stand-alone power line sensor and sensing technology development to provide continuous, proactive, and distributed wide area power grid monitoring with wireless sensor network technologies. Yi received her M.S. in electrical and computer engineering from Nanyang Technology University, Singapore, in 2001, and her B.E. in electrical engineering from Southeast University, Nanjing, China, in 1995.

Dr. Yang is the author and co-author of over 20 scientific papers and articles, and she also owns more than 10 patent awards. Yi is a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), and served as Chapter Chair of the IEEE Milwaukee Section Industrial Electronics Society and Industry Applications Society Joint Chapter from 2016–2018.