Anna Balazs Receives International Recognition for Materials Science and Soft Matter Research

Anna Balazs, the John A. Swanson Chair of Engineering and Distinguished Professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh, has received the 2025 Gutenberg Research Award from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz in Germany. Presented annually by the university’s Gutenberg Research College, the award is considered the institution’s most prestigious research prize.

A leading authority in materials science theory and soft matter science, Dr. Balazs conducts research on the statistical, mechanical, and computer modeling of complex chemical systems. In her work, she aims to develop theories for the properties of polymer blends and the behavior of polymers at surfaces and interfaces. She has been a faculty member with the University of Pittsburgh for nearly four decades.

Dr. Balazs is a graduate of Bryn Mawr College, a women’s liberal arts college in Pennsylvania, where she majored in physics. She earned her master’s degree and Ph.D. in materials science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.