Krzysztof Polaczek receives the Otto Wichterle Award 2026

On 24 June 2026, the Czech Academy of Sciences awarded the prestigious Otto Wichterle Award to twenty-three outstanding early-career researchers. The awards for 2026 were presented by the President of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Radomír Pánek. Among the awardees was also our colleague Krzysztof Polaczek from the Department of Polymer Processing.

The prestigious Otto Wichterle Award recognises exceptional talent at the beginning of a scientific career. Krzysztof Polaczek is involved in the development of so-called vitrimers based on renewable resources. Vitrimers are a new class of polymers that combine the properties of engineering thermosets, such as strength and thermochemical resistance, with those of commodity thermoplastics, which can be reprocessed and recycled. When heated, vitrimers can reorganise and repair themselves, enabling a longer service life and easier recycling. Addressing these important environmental challenges, Krzysztof also conducts research on degradable polymer foams. He collaborates with international research teams and combines experimental approaches from polymer chemistry and materials engineering. At our institute, he is an important member of the research team, and his work has also formed the basis of a European patent application.

We warmly congratulate our colleague!