BIOGRAPHY

Dr. Mannix P. Balanay is an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry at Nazarbayev University, where he leads research on the design and synthesis of functional materials for energy and environmental applications. He earned his Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from Kunsan National University in the Republic of Korea in 2012, specializing in third-generation solar cells. His doctoral research combined computational chemistry, organic synthesis, and device fabrication to advance solar energy technologies, and he continued this work as a research and invited professor at Kunsan National University.

Prior to his studies in Korea, Dr. Balanay was an instructor at Siquijor State College and Silliman University in the Philippines. He holds two master’s degrees in chemistry—one in computational chemistry from Kunsan National University and another in bioinorganic chemistry from Mindanao State University – Iligan Institute of Technology (MSU-IIT). His early research encompassed environmental chemistry, analytical chemistry, coastal resource management, and bacterial protein profiling. He has also trained first aid and water safety programs with the Philippine National Red Cross and is a certified Advanced Open Water Diver.

Since joining Nazarbayev University in 2014, Dr. Balanay has led multiple funded research projects from Nazarbayev University, the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and the Philippine Department of Science and Technology – Philippine Council for Industry, Energy, and Emerging Technology Research and Development (DOST-PCIEERD). In 2019, he received the prestigious “Balik Scientist” designation from DOST-PCIEERD.

He serves on the editorial board of Nano Research Energy (ranked 1/124, 99% in Chemistry – Miscellaneous, 2024 CiteScore), and as an academic editor for PLoS ONE (ranked 28/200, 86% in Multidisciplinary, 2024 CiteScore). He has also guest-edited for Materials Today: Proceedings and regularly reviews for high-impact journals, including Nature Communications, Journal of Materials Chemistry, and Chemical Engineering Journal. Additionally, he serves as a technical panel member for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology under the DOST-PCIEERD.

He was appointed as an ACQUIN subject-matter expert in Chemistry (Agency for Quality Assurance through Accreditation of Study Programs, Germany) in 2025, contributing his expertise to the evaluation and accreditation of chemistry programs. He became a full member of Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Honor Society, in 2026, an international organization dedicated to promoting scientific discovery, interdisciplinary collaboration, and recognition of outstanding research contributions.

RESEARCH INTERESTS

Dr. Balanay applies a multidisciplinary approach to the design and synthesis of functional materials to address pressing challenges in energy, environmental sustainability, and health. His research uniquely integrates computational, materials, and environmental chemistry to engineer innovative solutions. His current work in energy focuses on both conversion and storage, investigating organic and hybrid solar cells—including dye-sensitized, polymer, and perovskite systems—as well as advancing components for high-energy systems like zinc-air batteries.

In the realm of catalysis and remediation, Dr. Balanay develops tailored nanomaterials for critical electrocatalytic processes, covering CO₂ reduction (CO₂RR), hydrogen evolution (HER), nitrate reduction (NO₃RR), and oxygen electrocatalysis for decentralized H₂O₂ production. This expertise seamlessly bridges into his environmental research, which expands into the synthesis of advanced porous materials for wastewater treatment utilizing Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOP), alongside the development of smart membranes and sensors for pollutant detection. Through these integrated theoretical and experimental efforts, Dr. Balanay aims to advance functional materials science to deliver sustainable technologies for environmental protection and societal well-being.

For the full list of research grants, please click on this link.

For Dr. Balanay's current projects, please click on this link.

professional Membership

• American Chemical Society (USA)

• Korean Chemical Society (Korea)

• Royal Society of Chemistry (UK)

EDITORIAL POSITION

• Editorial Board Member, Nano Research Energy (Tsinghua University Press, released exclusively on SciOpen) (Citescore: Q1, Chemistry, miscellaneous)

• Academic Editor, PLoS ONE (Public Library of Science) (Citescore: Q1, Multidisciplinary)

• Guest Editor, Materials Today: Proceedings (Elsevier) link