PERSONAL INFORMATION:
Family name, First name:
Zuilhof, Han
Researcher unique identifier: ORCID 0000-0001-5773-8506
Date of birth:
21 May 1965
Nationality:
Dutch
URL:
www.wageningenur.nl/orc
EDUCATION:
MSc in Chemistry (1988, highest honors)
– focus on organic chemistry.
MA in Western Philosophy (1994, highest honors) – focus on theory of knowledge & logic.
PhD in Organic Chemistry (1994, highest honors)
– focus on physical organic and photo-chemistry.
CURRENT POSITIONS:
2008 –
Full professor and Chair of Organic Chemistry, Wageningen University, Wageningen,
The Netherlands (NL)
2011 –
Distinguished Adjunct HiCi Professor of Chemical Engineering, King Abdulaziz
University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
2015 –
Distinguished Perennial Guest Professor of Molecular Science, Health and Life Sciences
Department, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
MAIN RESEARCH INTERESTS:
I am interest in the development of surface-bound organic chemistry, meaning organic reactions taking
place at or near the confinement of a surface. This involves the synthesis of tailor-made molecules, the
development and use of analytical methods to study such modified surfaces, and the use of experimental
and theoretical (quantum-chemical) methods to quantitatively understand this.
This interest has recently expanded to both the (site selective) modification of protein surfaces and single
polymer studies.
Finally, I am very much interested in furthering the (scientific) relations between China and the
Netherlands, as one of my children is adopted from China.
PREVIOUS POSITIONS:
2007 – 2008
Full Professor of Organic Chemistry, Wageningen University, Wageningen, NL; current
group size: 92 people
2004 – 2007
Associate Professor of Organic Chemistry, Wageningen University, Wageningen, NL
1997 – 2004
Assistant Professor of Organic Chemistry, Wageningen University, Wageningen, NL
1996 – 1997
Postdoctoral fellow, Columbia University, New York, USA
1994 – 1996
NWO Talent postdoctoral fellow, University of Rochester (NY), USA
MAJOR SCIENTIFIC AWARDS / PRIZES (as PI):
2021
Robert Robinson Award in Synthetic Organic Chemistry, by Royal Society of Chemistry
(for contributions to click chemistry)
2019 – 2022 Xiaoxiang (“Hunan”) Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, Hunan Normal University,
Changsha, China
2019
Hunan 100 Talent Fellow, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, China.
2019
Sectorplan Chemistry & Physics, theme ‘Bioactive Surfaces’ [3.1 M€; 2020 - 2024]
2018
Fellow of Royal Society of Chemistry, UK
2017
JournalStar, ACS journal Langmuir [globally top-5 most prolific author & top-5 most
cited
author in Langmuir, 2010 – 2017)]
2017 – 2020 Distinguished Visiting Professor, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing,
ChinaShort CV Han Zuilhof
August 2022
2
2015 –
Distinguished Perennial Guest Professor, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
2013 – 2014
Joseph Meyerhoff Visiting Professor, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
2011 –
Distinguished Adjunct HiCi Professor, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
2007
Visiting Professor, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA
2005
Visiting Professor, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
2003
Visiting Fellow to the National Canadian Nanotechnology Institute, Ottawa, Canada
2002
Emerson Visiting Research Fellow at Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
H-Index / citations / papers: 67 ; > 17,500 ; >350.
SUPERVISION OF GRADUATE STUDENTS AND POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWS:
1997 –
21 postdocs / 74 PhD students (48 already defended successfully)
TEACHING ACTIVITIES:
As faculty member at Wageningen University I teach a number of BSc and MSc courses (“Structure and
Reactivity”, “Bio-organic chemistry at surfaces: Chemistry at the outmost nanometer”, “Molecular
Modelling with Applications in Biological Systems”). In addition, I teach various guest lectures and master
classes at Wageningen University, King Abdulaziz University and various Chinese universities, including
Tianjin University and Hunan Normal University. Finally, as international outreach to chemically
developing countries, I have recorded in 2020-2022 a series of 2nd year BSc spectroscopy and organic
chemistry lectures, and shared these, followed by ‘question hours’ by Zoom and e-mail.
ORGANIZATION OF SCIENTIFIC MEETINGS
2019
Vice-chair 4th International Conference on Bioinspired and Zwitterionic Materials.
Rolduc (NL); (ca. 150 participants)
2012 – 2018 Member of Program Committee of Thin Film Section for annual American Vacuum
Society meetings, USA (2000 participants per meeting)
2008 & 2013 Chair of annual Netherlands MicroNanoConference (ca. 600 participants each occasion)
INSTITUTIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES:
2017 –
Member of Academic Board, Wageningen University, NL
2017 –
Founder and Chair of ‘Wageningen Chemical Sciences’, Wageningen University, NL
2016 – 2018 Member of Management Team Department AFSG, Wageningen University, NL
(representing cluster ‘Biomolecular Sciences’)
2014 – 2017 Member of Scientific Advisory Committee of CAT AgroFood, a shared facility center for
advanced technology at Wageningen University
2010 – 2014
Main applicant and Chair of Scientific Advisory Committee of CAT AgroFood
2010 –
Member and Chair of various search committees at Wageningen University, NL
REVIEWING ACTIVITIES:
2020 –
Member of Editorial Advisory Board Cell Reports Physical Science (CellPress)
2016 – 2020
Senior Editor Langmuir (ACS)
2014 –
Member of Editorial Advisory Board Advanced Materials and Interfaces (Wiley)
2013 – 2015
Member of Editorial Advisory Board Langmuir (ACS)
2012 –
Panel member and vice-chair, NWO VENI and VIDI grants
2012 –
Member of Editorial Advisory Board Applied Surface Science (Elsevier)
2010 –
Panel member, NWO Chemical Sciences, TOP/ECHO grants
2010
Chair of NWO Rubicon Postdoctoral program Natural Sciences
1997 –
Regular reviewer and panel member for grant proposals of ERC, NWO, DFG, ISF, NSF,
SFI, NSERC, FORTH, KACST, etc.
1997 –
Regular reviewer for Nature Chem., Nature Synth, Angew. Chem., J. Am. Chem. Soc.,
Nature Comm., ACS Applied Mater. Interfaces, Langmuir, Adv. Mater. Interfaces, Chem.
Mater, etc. Short CV Han Zuilhof
August 2022
3
RECENT MEMBERSHIPS OF LOCAL, NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL SCIENTIFIC
ORGANIZATIONS:
Chemistry:
2013 – 2018
Chair Netherlands Research Foundation NWO, Study group Structure & Reactivity
2010 – 2017
Program Director of NanoNext Program Integrated Microsystems for Biosensing
Science:
2021 – 2022
Member of writing team for 2 National Growth Fund Applications (both granted)
2010 – 2017
Representative of Wageningen University in board of NanoNext
2012 – 2016 Board member of MinacNed
RELEVANT JOB-RELATED SOCIAL POSITIONS:
Founder of spin-off company Surfix (2011; currently 27 FTE), focusing on novel surface modifications
Founder of spin-off company Offspring (2019)
OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION:
Obtained personally >14 M€ in research funding for my chair group at Wageningen Univ.
Chair group ORC/Wageningen Univ that I am heading teaches > 2600 organic chemistry courses per year.
Chair group ORC/Wageningen Univ: permanent staff: 19 FTE; typically ~25 PhD students + varying
number of postdocs and MSc/BSc students.
Wagenngen, August 18, 2022
Prof. Han Zuilhof