Hannelore Geeraert

Hannelore is a PhD candidate in the FYSC (Physical Chemistry and Polymer Science) lab, part of the Sustainable Materials Engineering (SUME) research group, within the Department of Materials and Chemistry (MACH) at the Faculty of Engineering, Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB).

She obtained a Master of Science in Engineering from KU Leuven in June 2020. In October 2020, she started her PhD research in the FYSC and Microbiology (MICR) labs at VUB. In 2022, she was awarded a personal mandate in fundamental research from the Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (FWO).

Her research focuses on the structure–processing–property relationships of polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) copolymers. By integrating microbiology and materials chemistry, her work aims to deepen the understanding of these biopolymers and supports SUME’s mission to develop sustainable materials solutions. Hannelore is also active in science communication and was awarded the jury prize at the VUB Doctoral Derby in 2024.