PNNL

Daniel Gaspar serves as senior advisor to the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Association (PNWH2). He also contributes technical leadership to Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's (PNNL’s) hydrogen and fuel cell technologies program, is a member of the Net Zero World Initiative leadership team, and has helmed multiple PNNL science and technology endeavors.

In his advisor role with PNWH2, Gaspar provides strategic guidance and technical expertise on opportunities for and impacts of increased clean hydrogen deployment in the Pacific Northwest. Working with state and local governments, companies, utilities, educational institutions, nongovernmental organizations, and other local stakeholders, he has helped PNWH2 develop a compelling plan to deploy clean hydrogen to achieve Washington and Oregon decarbonization goals. Much of the work is focused on hard-to-abate sectors such as medium- and heavy-duty transportation, peak power generation, clean fertilizer manufacturing, port operations, and aviation. Gaspar also helps the PNWH2 leverage broad PNNL capabilities in techno-economic and life-cycle analysis, grid analytics, social impacts analysis, and hydrogen safety, production, storage, transport, and use.

Gaspar is a chemist with more than 23 years at PNNL, where he’s currently a project manager in the Chemical and Biological Process Development technical group. At PNNL, he has focused on developing and deploying chemistry and materials science capabilities to generate national impact in support of the Department of Energy's (DOE's) energy mission, including advancement of organic light emitting diodes, battery materials, and separations materials. Among his numerous leadership roles, he managed the Applied Chemistry team in PNNL’s Chemical and Biological Processing group and led the Co-Optimization of Fuels and Engines (Co-Optima) consortium. In Co-Optima, Gaspar worked with leaders from three other national laboratories to coordinate the efforts of nine national laboratories aimed at increasing the efficiency of light- and heavy-duty vehicles to reduce fuel consumption and harmful emissions. Earlier in his career, he was a manager at the William R. Wiley Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a DOE national user facility located at PNNL.

Over the years, Gaspar has been detailed to DOE in multiple roles, including supporting the Scientific User Facility Division in the Basic Energy Sciences program, as well as the National Laboratory Task Force of the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board while detailed to the Office of the Undersecretary for Science and Technology.

Along with more than 50 peer-reviewed publications and book chapters, Gaspar has co-edited a book on organic light emitting diodes. He has served the American Vacuum Society as the Governance chair, Constitution and By Laws chair, and Applied Surface Science Division chair. He also chaired the American Society for Testing and Materials’ E42 Committee on Surface Analysis.

Application of materials and fuel chemistry principles to develop new understanding and technologies to deliver a more sustainable energy future.

• PhD in chemistry, University of Chicago, 1998
• BS in chemistry, Duke University, 1992