Niko Van den Brande

Prof. Niko Van den Brande is a chemist by training and obtained his PhD in Engineering from Vrije Universiteit Brussel in 2015. After his PhD, he completed a research stay in the group of Prof. Christoph Schick at the University of Rostock. He was also a visiting researcher at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the group of Prof. Mark D. Ediger, supported by a postdoctoral grant from the Belgian American Educational Foundation.

He specializes in the application of advanced thermal and thermomechanical analysis techniques to elucidate structure–property–processing relationships in organic materials. Since his PhD research in organic photovoltaics, his work has focused on polymer materials for sustainable applications, including organic electronics, self-healing materials, bio-based materials, and biopolymers. Each of these systems can contribute in its own way to a less resource-intensive and more circular economy, for example by extending the lifetime of applications through self-healing materials and by using renewable feedstocks through bio-based materials and biopolymers. These systems share an ongoing need for both fundamental and applied materials science research.