Thomas Zawodzinski

Thomas Zawodzinski holds the prestigious Governor's Chair in Electrical Energy Storage with a joint appointment at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). He serves in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at UT and the Division of Materials Science and Technology at ORNL. Previously, he was the F. Alex Nason Professor of Engineering at Case Western Reserve University, Director of the Case Advanced Power Institute, and the Ohio Eminent Scholar in Fuel Cells. Earlier in his career, he served as Team Leader for Fuel Cells in MST-11 at Los Alamos National Laboratory for 13 years.

Dr. Zawodzinski earned his Ph.D. in Chemistry from SUNY/Buffalo, focusing on electrochemical devices for energy applications, including fundamental and applied studies of batteries and fuel cells, applications of NMR methods to study transport and structure in device components, preparation of advanced functional materials, and development of molecular device concepts.

His research spans multiple energy storage technologies with particular expertise in metal air batteries, redox flow batteries, fuel cells, and membranes. Current research directions include electrolytes and composite electrodes for fuel cells, fundamentals of energy storage materials and systems, water management in fuel cells, and application of NMR to chemical engineering problems. His work at LANL also included lithium batteries, preparation of new electrolytes, studies of transport and electrode materials, self-assembled monolayers for device preparation, and sensors for chemical/biological agents.

Analysis of Dr. Zawodzinski's publication record reveals a strong focus on solid-state electrolytes, particularly sulfide-based materials for batteries, and continued work on redox flow battery systems. His research spans fundamental material characterization to practical battery component development, with emphasis on mechanical properties, ion transport, and electrochemical stability across multiple energy storage technologies including lithium batteries, zinc-based systems, and various fuel cell configurations.

• ECS Energy Technology Division Research Award (2016)
• Royal Academy of Engineering Fellowship (2015)
• Poly Fellow (2015)
• Ohio Eminent Scholar in Fuel Cells

Dr. Zawodzinski has secured significant research funding through Department of Energy projects, including leading a DOE Fuel Cell Project. His professional service includes membership on the International Advisory Board for the Journal of Power Sources and extensive conference organization including the Asilomar Conference on Advances in Polymers for Fuel Cells. He has served as Discussion Leader for the Fuel Cell Gordon Conference multiple times and co-organized numerous ACS and Electrochemical Society symposia.

He leads the Energy Storage and Conversion Group within the Chemical Transformations Section of ORNL's Chemical Sciences Division, focusing on developing advanced materials for next-generation energy storage technologies with applications ranging from grid-scale storage to portable power systems.