PNNL

A catalysis researcher at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has been elected to the rank of fellow in the American Vacuum Society. Zdenek Dohnálek was recognized for his contributions toward understanding the elementary steps of catalytic reactions on oxides.

Dohnálek is a senior research scientist on PNNL's catalysis science research team, focusing on enhancing reactions that enable renewable energy.  He studies systems that improve understanding of the complex processes that take place in heterogeneous catalysis for renewable energy such as biomass upgrading, CO₂ conversion, and photocatalytic water-splitting. He is an internationally renowned leader in the area of imaging of single molecule reactions. He earned a master's degree in chemical engineering from the Institute of Chemical Engineering in Prague and a doctorate in physical chemistry from the University of Pittsburgh.

AVS is an interdisciplinary professional society that brings together scientists from a wide range of fields, including chemistry, physics, biology, mathematics and engineering. The rank of AVS fellow recognizes members who have made sustained and outstanding scientific and technical research contributions. No more than one-half of one percent of members are elected to the rank each year.

Dohnálek will be recognized along with the rest of the 2017 class of fellows at the society's fall symposium in Tampa in November.