As Chief Science and Technology Officer for Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Energy and Environment Directorate, Dr. Jud Virden manages the directorate’s science and technology capabilities to impact important energy and environment challenges. Throughout his more than 20 years at PNNL, Dr. Virden has provided leadership in the strategic direction and growth of PNNL energy programs for the U.S. Department of Energy and industry. He has helped shape national public/private partnerships that move science and technology from discovery to deployment. His responsibilities have covered renewable and energy efficiency, nuclear energy, smart grid technologies and fossil energy programs and his experiences have given him a unique, comprehensive systems view of the overall energy infrastructure, as well as the challenges of developing a global clean energy future.

Dr. Virden has received R&D 100 and Federal Laboratory Consortium awards for work on the development of non-thermal plasma technology. He also received a Discover Award with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for fuel reformation technologies, and contributed to a Financial Times Global Automotive Award for PNNL’s contributions to Delphi’s development of nonthermal plasma technology for automotive applications. He holds two U.S. patents, and serves on the board of the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy. 

Before joining PNNL, Dr. Virden worked in the Science Research Laboratory at the 3M Company. He holds a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Washington.