David W. Ball is professor of chemistry at Cleveland State University. His research interests include computational chemistry of new high energy materials, matrix isolation spectroscopy, and various topics in chemical education. He has over 220 publications, equally split between research articles and educational articles, including eight books currently in print. Dr. Ball has mentored over 70 undergraduate students in the research lab, with many of his students co-authoring manuscripts. He has also mentored nine graduate students, including 5 Ph.D. students. He has won some recognition for the quality of his work, receiving several departmental awards as well as the university's Distinguished Faculty Teaching Award in 2002 and the Distinguished Faculty Service Award in 2010, becoming only the fourth CSU faculty member to be awarded two Distinguished Faculty Awards. He is also active in professional service, serving on the Board of Governors of the Cleveland Technical Societies Council. He is currently an alternate councilor for the Cleveland Section of the ACS, and has served Cleveland ACS as Chair in 1998, the year for which the Cleveland Section was awarded Outstanding Section for its size. He was Chair of the Cleveland Section again for 2009, the only living person to have served so twice. In 2011, Dr. Ball was named a Fellow of the American Chemical Society. For the 2011-12 academic year, Dr. Ball served as Distinguished Visiting Faculty at the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

Infrared spectroscopic studies of matrix-isolated species, especially the interaction of transition metal atoms with small molecules; computational chemistry of metal atom - molecule interactions and other intermolecular interactions; chemistry of model lubricant compounds and their decomposition products; thermochemistry of new fuel materials; various topics in chemical education.