S. Frank and Doris Culberson Distinguished Professor Orlin Velev is the 2027 recipient of the American Chemical Society (ACS) Award in Colloid Chemistry. The award was established in 1952 and recognizes outstanding scientific contributions to colloid chemistry.

“I am deeply honored and profoundly grateful to receive the ACS Award in Colloid Chemistry. By its nature, this award recognizes a large body of multidisciplinary research performed in my group since I joined NC State University,” Velev said. 

“None of these research contributions would have been possible without the past and present Ph.D. students and postdocs in my group whose enthusiasm, intellectual curiosity and perseverance have made possible every colloid science advance that this award recognizes.”

At NC State, Velev’s research group is focused on fundamental and exploratory projects in colloids, microfluidics and nanoscience. The major thrust is the controlled on-chip assembly of colloidal particles into advanced materials and microscopic functional structures. Their research could underlie future technologies for fabrication of chemical and biological sensors, photonic devices, microscale materials synthesis, bioelectronic interfacing, and advanced manufacturing of sustainable nanocomposite bioplastics. 

Velev joined the department of chemical and biomolecular engineering at NC State in 2001 following appointments at the University of Sofia, the Japanese Exploratory Research for Advanced Technology program and the University of Delaware. He has won numerous awards for his research and teaching with some recent awards including the AIChE Braskem Award for Excellence in Materials Engineering and Science (2024), induction into the NC State Research Leadership Academy (2022), the ACS Langmuir Lecture Award (2018), and the AIChE Andreas Acrivos Award for Professional Progress in Chemical Engineering (2017). 

He will be honored at an awards ceremony on Tuesday, March 23, 2027, in conjunction with the ACS Spring 2027 national meeting in New Orleans. A symposium honoring the award will be organized at the ACS 2027 Fall Meeting.