William Tumas — Deputy Laboratory Director, Science and Technology, and Chief Research Officer

Bill Tumas serves as the senior scientific leader for the laboratory and is responsible for developing NLR's scientific and technical strategic planning efforts.

He evaluates and identifies opportunities for strengthening the laboratory's core capabilities, improving the quality and impact of its research, and increasing the relevance of its programs. As deputy laboratory director, Tumas collaborates with NLR's director and associate laboratory directors to create and accomplish NLR's strategic agenda, measures the lab's progress toward its goals and objectives, and champions its scientific research to external stakeholders.

Tumas manages key relationships with leading research institutions, the Science and Technology Committee of the Alliance for Energy Innovation board of directors, the Chief Research Officer's Council, and other committees within the U.S. Department of Energy. He also works with senior leadership to promote the development of NLR's talent pipelines.

Previously, Tumas led NLR's materials, chemical, and computational science capabilities, spanning fundamental and applied R&D in materials discovery, chemistry and nanoscience, solar energy conversion, hydrogen and fuel cells, energy storage, and advanced computing. He also oversaw NLR's solar, hydrogen and fuel cells, basic energy sciences, advanced computing, and Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy programs.

Tumas has more than 30 years of experience in research and scientific leadership across industry and the national laboratory system. He joined NLR in 2009 as director of the Chemical and Materials Science Center. Before joining NLR, he spent 17 years at Los Alamos National Laboratory, where his last position was program director for applied energy programs. He began his career at DuPont Central Research.

Tumas earned a Bachelor of Arts in chemistry from Ithaca College and a doctorate in chemistry from Stanford University. He completed postdoctoral research at the California Institute of Technology.