Professor Richard Spontak has been selected as the International Association of Advanced Materials (IAAM) Researcher of the Year.

With over 50,000 members from over 100 countries, the IAAM is a principal organization in the field of advanced materials. The title of Researcher of the Year “is one of the highest awards conferred by IAAM to honor the scientists and researchers who have been involved in high-end research for 25 years or more and have significantly contributed to the area of Materials Science, Engineering, and Technology…  The IAAM presents the honor to recognize excellence in research and recognize leading ground-breaking scientific contributions.”

Recipients of the Researcher of the Year award deliver an award lecture either online in the IAAM Advanced Materials Lecture Series or in an assembly of the Advanced Materials Congress. The lectures are recorded and published in the Open Access Video journal of IAAM, Video Proceedings of Advanced Materials.

Prof. Spontak’s informative and entertaining lecture, “There and Back Again: A Professor’s Tale” can be viewed here (double click for full-screen viewing).

Prof. Spontak is a Distinguished Professor of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, a Professor of Materials Science & Engineering and an Alumni Distinguished Graduate and Undergraduate Professor. He received his B.S. degree from Pennsylvania State University and his Ph.D. degree from the University of California at Berkeley, both in chemical engineering. He completed post-doctoral research in Materials Science & Metallurgy at the University of Cambridge (U.K.) and at the Institute for Energy Technology (Norway).

Although active in a diverse range of disciplines, Spontak’s primary research interests relate to the phase behavior and morphology/property development of nanostructured polymers, coatings and stimuli-responsive soft materials. His research efforts have led to 300+ publications in peer-reviewed journals, 30+ journal covers that feature images from his work and several winning entries in the yearly NC State Research Image Contest.

Spontak is the recipient of numerous honors and awards. These include the ACS Cooperative Research Award in Polymer Science & Engineering, the Minerals and Mining Colwyn Medal and the Society of Plastics Engineers International Award. His NC State honors include the Alcoa Foundation Distinguished Engineering Research Award, the NC State Outstanding Global Engagement Award and a UNC Board of Governors’ Award for Teaching Excellence.

He is an elected fellow of the American Physical Society, the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, the Royal Society of Chemistry and the International Association of Advanced Materials. He is also a member of the Norwegian Academy of Technological Sciences (NTVA), which is the Norwegian equivalent of the National Academy of Engineering.

Congratulations to Professor Spontak for this prestigious award and all of your outstanding accomplishments!