PNNL Transportation Researchers Win Two Department of Energy Awards

The Department of Energy’s Transportation Technologies Office (TTO) has issued two 2026 Annual Merit Review Awards to researchers from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). Both awards recognize PNNL researchers whose work is reducing the need for critical materials in the American transportation sector.

Dongping Lu, a research scientist in PNNL’s Electrochemical Materials and Systems Group, received TTO’s Distinguished Achievement Award for his work to advance high-performance lithium–sulfur batteries and all-solid-state batteries, and to develop scalable next-generation battery manufacturing approaches.

Lithium–sulfur batteries have the potential to exceed the performance of lithium-ion batteries while eliminating the need for critical materials like nickel, manganese, and cobalt.  The breakthroughs made by Lu’s team significantly advanced the state of the art for lithium–sulfur batteries and have become a cornerstone of the Battery500 Consortium.

“Dongping has been an outstanding role model for the next generation of scientists—not only as an exceptional leader in scientific research, but also as a dedicated team player who consistently supports the broader team whenever needed,” said Jie Xiao, Battelle Fellow at PNNL with a joint appointment as the Boeing Martin professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Washington in Seattle. “Over the past decade, PNNL has cultivated many scientific leaders like Dongping, and we will continue to foster an environment where young scientists can thrive, grow, and flourish.”

TTO also issued a Team Award to researchers from PNNL, Washington State University, the University of New Mexico, Stellantis, and BASF for their work to drastically reduce the need for rhodium in catalytic converters without any performance loss.

Rhodium is by far the costliest of the precious metals required to manufacture a catalytic converter; in fact, rhodium often costs more per ounce than gold. The research team showed that single-atom rhodium was more effective than clustered rhodium nanoparticles, enabling catalytic converters that use half the rhodium but perform just as well. The discovery could lead to significant cost reductions for U.S. automakers and drivers.

The PNNL researchers on the team are Yong Wang, a Lab Fellow and director of the Lab’s Institute for Integrated Catalysis and a Regents Professor at Washington State University, and Konstantin Khivantsev, a chemical engineer.

“This Team Award is not only recognition for the research team’s excellent technical accomplishments, but also for the high-impact organizational partnerships that enabled their work to span fundamental research, commercial scale-up, and market deployment,” said Darrell Herling, program manager for transportation technologies at PNNL. “This team, led by Yong Wang, is a great example of how to effectively bridge science and commercial applications. Yong is the rare kind of scientist who both deeply understands the basic energy sciences and can effectively translate that knowledge into meaningful solutions for industry.”

Both awards were presented by TTO Director Austin Brown during the office’s 2026 Annual Merit Review Plenary Session.

“These prestigious recognitions are a clear testament to the real-world results that PNNL is delivering across the board, from groundbreaking discoveries in materials science to industry collaborations that accelerate the pace of commercialization,” said Matteo Muratori, PNNL’s sector director for energy technology. “The awards not only reflect the excellence of their recipients, but also demonstrate our sponsors’ appreciation for the dedication, commitment, and outstanding impact of PNNL’s broader team.”