Dr. Kirk Gerdes

Dr. Kirk Gerdes serves as Deputy Director of the National Energy Technology Laboratory’s (NETL) Research and Innovation Center (RIC) and oversees tactical implementation of NETL’s in-house research program.  

Prior to serving as Deputy Director for RIC, Dr. Gerdes served as a federal researcher and research group leader in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) at U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) from 2006 to 2015. In 2015, Dr. Gerdes transitioned to management roles as Chief of Staff to the NETL Director, Chief of Staff to the NETL Chief Research Officer, Senior Technical Adviser to the NETL Director, and acting Associate Director for Materials Engineering and Manufacturing.  

Dr. Gerdes earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Kansas and a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Houston. Dr. Gerdes is a member of the visiting committee of the Statler College of Engineering at West Virginia University.  Dr. Gerdes has been an author or co-author on more than 60 peer reviewed publications, and is a co-inventor on several patents covering the process for manufacture and application of solid oxide fuel cell electrocatalysts.