Dr Paul Trodden

School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Senior Lecturer

p.trodden@sheffield.ac.uk
+44 114 222 5679

Full contact details

Dr Paul Trodden
School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Amy Johnson Building
Portobello Street
Sheffield
S1 3JD
Profile

Dr Paul Trodden is a Lecturer in the Department of Automatic Control & Systems Engineering (ACSE)University of Sheffield.

Paul received the MEng degree in Engineering Science from the University of Oxford in 2003, and a PhD in Aerospace Engineering (thesis: Robust distributed control of constrained linear systems) from the University of Bristol in 2009. Between 2009 and 2010, he was a post-doctoral research assistant in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Univ. Bristol, while from 2010 to 2012 he was a post-doctoral research associate in the School of Mathematics, University of Edinburgh.

At Edinburgh, he was a member of the Edinburgh Research Group in Optimization (ERGO) and the Edinburgh Optimization for Energy group. Between 2003 and 2005, he worked as a Systems Engineer for BAE Systems Avionics in Edinburgh.

Dr Trodden is a member of the Intelligent Systems, Decision and Control (ISDC) research group.

Research interests

My research interests lie in control theory and optimization, with particular focus on the following topics. For papers, please see my list of publications below or my Google Scholar profile.

Robust, adaptive and distributed model predictive control

I lead research in the theory and algorithms for control of large-scale, constrained dynamic systems. Our focus is on developing controllers that are implementable (in terms of design simplicity and computational tractability) yet achieve desirable guarantees (e.g. of stability, constraint satisfaction).

Set-theoretic methods for control

My research in this area involves developing theory and algorithms for the characterization and computation of invariant sets for uncertain systems. These sets play an important and fundamental role in the analysis and design of advanced control systems.

Control and optimization in smart grids

My current research in this area applies predictive control theory and efficient optimization algorithms to control and planning problems in smart grids and power networks. I have published research on problems including optimal power flow (OPF), economic dispatch, load-frequency control, and controlled islanding for the prevention of blackouts. (See the on-line archive of test cases for OPF problems with local optima.)

Advanced control for gas turbine engines and aerospace applications

I lead control-themed research within the Rolls-Royce University Technology Centre in Control, Monitoring and Systems Engineering. Current research involves developing advanced control laws for the next generation of large civil gas turbine engines.

Publications

Journal articles

Chapters

Conference proceedings papers

Reports

  • Bukhsh WA, Grothey A, McKinnon KIM & Trodden P (2013) Local solutions of the optimal power flow problem, ERGO preprint 13-018, School of Mathematics, University of Edinburgh RIS download Bibtex download
  • Trodden P, Bukhsh WA, Grothey A & McKinnon KIM (2011) MILP islanding of power networks by bus splitting, ERGO preprint 11-016, School of Mathematics, University of Edinburgh RIS download Bibtex download
  • Bukhsh WA, Grothey A, McKinnon KIM & Trodden P (2011) Local solutions of optimal power flow, ERGO preprint 11-017, School of Mathematics, University of Edinburgh RIS download Bibtex download
  • Trodden P, Bukhsh WA, Grothey A & McKinnon KIM (2011) MILP formulation for islanding of power networks, ERGO preprint 11-015, School of Mathematics, University of Edinburgh RIS download Bibtex download

Other

Preprints

  • Baldivieso-Monasterios PR & Trodden PA (2020) Coalitional predictive control: consensus-based coalition forming with robust regulation, arXiv. RIS download Bibtex download
  • Trodden PA, Maestre JM & Ishii H (2019) Actuation attacks on constrained linear systems: a set-theoretic analysis, arXiv. RIS download Bibtex download
  • Baldivieso-Monasterios PR & Trodden PA (2018) Model predictive control of linear systems with preview information: feasibility, stability and inherent robustness, arXiv. RIS download Bibtex download
  • Hernandez BA & Trodden PA (2018) Stabilizing predictive control with persistence of excitation for constrained linear systems, arXiv. RIS download Bibtex download
  • Guicherd R, Trodden PA, Mills AR & Kadirkamanathan V (2017) Weak Interactions Based System Partitioning Using Integer Linear Programming, arXiv. RIS download Bibtex download
  • Hernandez B, Baldivieso P & Trodden P (2016) Distributed MPC: Guaranteeing Global Stabilizability from Locally Designed Tubes, arXiv. RIS download Bibtex download
  • Monasterios PRB, Hernandez B & Trodden PA (2016) Nested Distributed Model Predictive Control, arXiv. RIS download Bibtex download
  • Hernandez B & Trodden P (2016) Distributed Model Predictive Control Using a Chain of Tubes, arXiv. RIS download Bibtex download
  • Hernandez B & Trodden P (2015) Persistently Exciting Tube MPC, arXiv. RIS download Bibtex download
  • Trodden P (2015) A One-step Approach to Computing a Polytopic Robust Positively Invariant Set, arXiv. RIS download Bibtex download
  • Trodden PA, Bukhsh WA, Grothey A & McKinnon KIM (2013) Optimization-based Islanding of Power Networks using Piecewise Linear AC Power Flow, arXiv. RIS download Bibtex download
Research group

I am keen to hear from outstanding, motivated students who are interested in studying for a PhD in a topic related to my research interests; some example project topics may be found here.

You will need to apply by following the process here, nominating me as primary supervisor. Please contact me beforehand to discuss your application. Please note that, if your application is successful, the offer of a PhD does not mean that the project will be funded; more information about fees, funding and scholarships may be found here.

Current and past students include:

  • Amba J. Asuk (Topic: Distributed random convex programming for robust optimal control of large-scale systems)
  • Abidemi Ajiborisha (Topic: Load-frequency control incorporating renewable energy resources)
  • Kacper Grzedzinski (Topic: Adaptive model predictive control for condition-based gas turbine engine control)
  • Romain Guicherd (with Visakan Kadirkamanathan) (Topic: Distributed model-based control for gas turbine engines)
  • Bernardo Hernandez Vicente (Thesis: Model predictive control for linear systems: adaptive, distributed and switching implementations)
  • Pablo Baldivieso Monasterios (Thesis: Distributed model predictive control for reconfigurable large-scale systems)
  • Eyefujirin Ejegi (with Anthony Rossiter) (Thesis: Model predictive based load frequency control studies in a deregulated environment
Professional activities and memberships