Anja R.A. Palmans

Anja R.A. Palmans is a Full Professor at the Eindhoven University of Technology, affiliated with the School of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry and the Department of Supramolecular Chemistry & Catalysis. She is a core member of ICMS and EIRES Research programs.

• Academic Role: Full Professor (Supramolecular Chemistry & Catalysis)
• Research Affiliations: NWO Gravitation Program 'Functional Molecular Systems'

Her research focuses on:

• Mimicking natural multistep synthesis to reduce purification costs and waste in complex molecule production
• Controlling supramolecular copolymerization dynamics through catalyst compartmentalization
• Developing water-soluble polymers with self-assembling recognition motifs
• Advancing biomedical applications like prodrug activation for cancer therapies

Recent article trends span supramolecular self-assembly, polymer-facilitated catalysis, and dynamic covalent networks with biomedical and sustainable chemistry applications. Key subfields include hydrogen bonding, organocatalysis, and bioorthogonal reactions.

• Scientific Awards: 2011 NWO Prize for synthetic water-soluble catalytic systems

She has supervised over 100 graduate works and leads research contributing to UN Sustainable Development Goals through functional molecular systems. Her lab investigates:

• Compartmentalization via synthetic polymer folding
• Equilibrium control in supramolecular polymers
• Biocompatible nanoparticle design