Dr. Richard John Spontak is Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering and Materials Science & Engineering at North Carolina State University, USA, and Foreign Member of the Norwegian Academy of Technological Sciences (NTVA). He earned his B.S. in chemical engineering from Penn State University and Ph.D. from UC Berkeley. He completed postdoctoral training at the University of Cambridge and the Institute for Energy Technology in Norway, followed by industrial research at Procter & Gamble before joining NC State in 1992.

He leads the Macromolecular Materials & Morphology Group, focusing on thermoplastic elastomers, nanostructured polymers, responsive soft materials and 3D electron microscopy characterization. With over 300 peer-reviewed papers and nearly 450 invited lectures worldwide, he received the ACS Chemistry of Thermoplastic Elastomers Award and IOM3 Colwyn Medal, top honors in global rubber research.

He served as Lars Onsager Professor at NTNU Norway and holds an honorary doctorate there. A fellow of APS, RSC and ACS, he maintains long-term academic exchanges with Chinese elastomer forums and universities, widely recognized as a leading authority in elastomer science.