David received his 1st class honours B.Sc. in Applied Physics from the University of Limerick, in 2009 and his PhD from the Department of Physics in the University of Limerick in 2014. His PhD thesis focused on the synthesis, structural and electrochemical performance of V₂O₅ nanostructures as cathode materials for advanced lithium-ion batteries.

Following this, David worked as a postdoctoral researcher in the School of Chemistry in University College Cork from 2014 to 2018. During this time, he researched the synthesis and electrochemical characterisation of metal oxide and semiconductor nanostructures as anode and cathode materials for Li-ion batteries. From 2018 to 2020 David gained international experience while working as a postdoctoral fellow in the Electrochemistry Laboratory of the Paul Scherrer Institute in Switzerland, where his research focused on lithium-sulfur batteries. David returned to the University of Limerick in late 2020 to work as a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Chemical Sciences and the Bernal Institute. During this time, David researched nanostructured silicon anode materials for application in bespoke Li-ion batteries for smart manufacturing applications as part of a Confirm Centre funded project.

David joined the ADMIRE programme as currently a Marie Curie Research Fellow and worked on the conversion of waste plastic into value added porous carbon materials for use in advanced lithium-sulfur batteries. To date David has successfully been awarded a number of prestigious funding grants including the Royal Irish Academy Charlemont Grant, the SFI Future Innovator Prize and a Marie Curie COFUND Fellowship.

David has now taken up a position in UL, having departed from ADMIRE in late 2022.