Project team

Work package 1: Investigation of the molecular and crystal structure of macrocyclic compounds and their electrochemical and extraction properties

Martina Medvidović-Kosanović, redovita profesorica
CV:
Martina Medvidović-Kosanović began her employment at the Faculty of Food Technology in Osijek in 1999, where she worked as an assistant until 2008. In November 2008, she started working at the Department of Chemistry, where she gradually advanced to the position of full professor. She earned her master’s degree in 2003 and her PhD in 2011 at the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, specialising in Physical Chemistry. Her scientific research focuses on the electrochemical characterisation of biologically active compounds and macrocyclic metal complexes, monitoring the formation of metal complexes with biologically active molecules, and determining the stability constant of the resulting complexes. The most frequently used techniques in her work are electrochemical methods (voltammetry, EIS, SECM, potentiometry) andspectroscopic methods (UV/VIS spectroscopy). She has participated in scientific projects funded by the Croatian Science Foundation, the Scientific Center of Excellence, a project financed by the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism and the Kingdom of Norway, as well as institutional research projects. She is the author of 38 peer-reviewed scientific papers and an active participant in national and international conferences. As a mentor, she has supervised more than 50 undergraduate and graduate theses and has also supervised one doctoral dissertation. Her work also includes many years of experience in the field of physical chemistry, as well as laboratory experience in voltammetry and spectroscopy. She is a member of the Croatian Chemical Society (HKD) and the International Society of Electrochemistry (ISE).

Tomislav Balić, izvanredni profesor
CV:
Tomislav Balić has been employed since 2007 at the Department of Chemistry, University of Osijek, where he has gradually advanced from assistant to associate professor. He earned his PhD in 2013 at the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, in Inorganic and Structural Chemistry. His scientific work focuses on the synthesis, structural characterization, and supramolecular chemistry of macrocyclic Schiff bases, coordination polymers, and porous materials. He is particularly engaged in studying interactions within crystals, host–guest systems, and the properties of new inorganic and organic materials. He has participated in scientific projects, including projects funded by the Croatian Science Foundation as well as institutional research projects. He is the author of thirty peer-reviewed scientific papers and an active participant in international conferences. As a mentor, he has supervised several undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral theses. His contributions also include extensive experience in university teaching in inorganic chemistry and solid-state chemistry, along with substantial laboratory expertise in synthesis, spectroscopy, thermal analysis, and crystallography. He is a member of the Croatian Chemical Society and the Croatian Crystallographic Association.

Ivana Balić, stručna savjetnica
CV:
Tomislav Balić has been employed since 2007 at the Department of Chemistry, University of Osijek, where he has gradually advanced from assistant to associate professor. He earned his PhD in 2013 at the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, in Inorganic and Structural Chemistry. His scientific work focuses on the synthesis, structural characterization, and supramolecular chemistry of macrocyclic Schiff bases, coordination polymers, and porous materials. He is particularly engaged in studying interactions within crystals, host–guest systems, and the properties of new inorganic and organic materials. He has participated in scientific projects, including projects funded by the Croatian Science Foundation as well as institutional research projects. He is the author of thirty peer-reviewed scientific papers and an active participant in international conferences. As a mentor, he has supervised several undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral theses. His contributions also include extensive experience in university teaching in inorganic chemistry and solid-state chemistry, along with substantial laboratory expertise in synthesis, spectroscopy, thermal analysis, and crystallography. He is a member of the Croatian Chemical Society and the Croatian Crystallographic Association.

Work package 2: Green approaches to the synthesis of coordination compounds of transition metals and their biological properties

Nikolina Filipović, viši asistent
CV:
Nikolina Filipović earned her Master’s degree from the Department of Chemistry at Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek and completed her doctoral studies in chemistry at the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb. Her doctoral research focused on the preparation of neutral transition-metal complexes, their structural characterization, and the evaluation of their antiproliferative effects using 2D and 3D cell models. Her scientific interests include the synthesis and characterization of biologically relevant metal complexes, structure–activity relationships, the development of advanced 3D cell culture models, and the application of analytical techniques for compound identification and monitoring. She has participated in several scientific and professional projects and in 2023 led a project investigating the effectiveness of new copper complexes on 3D cell models. In the same year, she received a doctoral student support grant from Osijek-Baranja County. She is the author and co-author of multiple scientific papers and regularly presents her work at national and international conferences. She is a member of the Croatian Chemical Society, the Society of Chemists and Technologists of Osijek, the Croatian Association for Cancer Research, and the Croatian Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Work package 3: “Ecological materials” and their potential risk for nephrological health

Anamarija Stanković, izvanredna profesorica
CV:
Anamarija Stanković has been employed at the Department of Chemistry, University of Osijek, since 2012, where she progressed from the position of professional associate to her current rank of Associate Professor. She obtained her PhD in 2018 from the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, in the field of Inorganic and Structural Chemistry. Her scientific work is focused on interdisciplinary research in pathological biomineralization, with particular emphasis on the formation and transformation of calcium oxalate (CaOx) crystals, the principal mineral component of kidney stones. She investigates the early stages of crystallization and the influence of physicochemical parameters, biochemical factors (amino acids, vitamins, citrates), as well as the potential contribution of microplastics (MP) to kidney stone pathogenesis. Her research includes the analysis of CaOx crystalline phases (COM, COD, COT), the study of hydrodynamic and thermodynamic conditions governing their precipitation, the use of additives to modulate crystal growth, and the assessment of ionic strength and the composition of simulated biological media. She has participated in research projects funded by the Croatian Science Foundation, institutional research projects, and several applied European projects. She is the author of more than thirty peer-reviewed scientific papers and an active participant in over sixty domestic and international conferences. As a supervisor, co-supervisor, or mentor, she has guided numerous undergraduate and graduate theses. Her work also includes extensiveteaching experience in general and inorganic chemistry at the university level. She is a member of the Croatian Chemical Society and the Croatian crystallographic Association.

Work package 4: Statistical approaches to the analysis of longterm trends in air quality

Brunislav Matasović, izvanredni profesor
CV:
Brunislav Matasović was born in 1979. He graduated from the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb in 2003, and received his doctorate from the same faculty in 2010. His main scientific interests are environmental chemistry, atmospheric chemistry and other areas of physical chemistry. He worked at the RBI from 2003 to 2013 and has been working at the Department of Chemistry at the University of Osijek since 2013. He is a co-author of 21 scientific papers cited by Web of Science, of which 10 are related to the topic of part of the project, of which 9 are the main author. He is a member of the Croatian Chemical Society (from 2023 to 2025 and president of the Osijek branch), the Croatian Radiation Protection Society and the Croatian Air Protection Association.

Vlatka Gvozdić, Associate Professor
CV:
Vlatka Gvozdić has been employed at the Department of Chemistry, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, since 2005, where she actively participates in both research and teaching activities and has progressively advanced from senior assistant to associate professor. She earned her PhD in 2006 at the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, in the field of Physical Chemistry. Her research focuses on air and water chemistry, the synthesis of new compounds, the application of green chemistry principles, electrochemistry, and chemometric methods. In her work, she pays particular attention to the development of sustainable chemical processes and the use of modern mathematical and statistical approaches in the analysis and interpretation of chemical data. As a supervisor and mentor, she has supervised numerous undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral theses. She has participated in projects funded by the Croatian Science Foundation as well as institutional research projects. She is the author of forty peer-reviewed scientific publications in international journals and actively participates in international scientific conferences, presenting the results of her research. Her contributions also include experience in university teaching in general chemistry, chemometrics, thermodynamics and mathematical methods in chemistry. Her work also encompasses extensive laboratory experience in general, inorganic, and analytical chemistry. She is a member of the Croatian Chemical Society.
Članica je Hrvatskoga kemijskog društva.

Elvira Kovač-Andrić, izvanredna profesorica
CV:
Elvira Kovač-Andrić has been employed at the Department of Chemistry, University of Osijek, since 2005, and is currently an associate professor. She received her master's degree in 2003 from the Faculty of Science and Mathematics, University of Zagreb, and her doctorate from the same faculty in 2010. Her scientific work focuses on atmospheric chemistry and environmental protection, as well as on the field of inorganic synthesis. She is particularly interested in researching tropospheric pollution, applying statistical methods and models for assessing the impact of meteorological parameters on the dynamics of atmospheric pollution. She has made scientific contributions as an associate in a number of projects funded by the competent Ministry (MZOŠ/MZO), and in the last few years she has been involved in institutional projects. She is the author of more than thirty peer-reviewed scientific papers and an active participant in international conferences. As a mentor, she has supervised numerous final and diploma theses and supervised doctoral theses. Her work includes many years of experience in university teaching in the field of inorganic chemistry and atmospheric chemistry, as well as laboratory experience in the field of instrumental techniques. She is a member of the Croatian Chemical Society.

Work package 5: Catalytic degradation of organic pollutants in water

Jelena Kojčinović, viši asistent
CV:
Jelena Kojčinović (m. Bijelić) has been employed since 2018 at the Department of Chemistry of the University of Osijek through “Young Researchers’ Career Development Project – Training New Doctoral Students” financed by the Croatian Science Foundation (CSF). She earned her PhD in 2021 at the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, in Inorganic and Structural Chemistry. She was awarded a national scholarship “For Women in Science” the same year for her doctoral research, which included the investigation of electrical and magnetic properties of double and triple perovskite nanomaterials for potential applications in triboelectric nanogenerators. She gained her professional training at several scientific institutions abroad and participated in numerous domestic and international scientific conferences. She focuses her postdoctoral research on the design of medium- and high-entropy oxides with application in catalysis and potentialapplication in supercapacitors. She has been a principal investigator in several projects financed by donations of the Foundation of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts and HEP Group (Croatian electricity industry) and a participant in CSF projects and bilateral exchange projects. As an immediate supervisor, she has independently supervised several graduate and undergraduate theses. She has conducted seminar and laboratory practices for students in general physics, inorganic chemistry and teaching methods in chemistry. She is a member of the Croatian Chemical Society (CCS) and a reviewer for various journals (Royal Society of Chemistry, American Chemical Society, Elsevier and Springer).

Dominik Goman, asistent
CV:
Dominik Goman obtained his Master’s degree in Chemistry in 2020 at the Department of Chemistry, University of Osijek, where he completed his Master’s thesis entitled “Optimization of hydrothermal method toward synthesis of complex metal oxides containing manganese”. In the same year, he was employed as a Research and Teaching Assistant at the Department of Chemistry, University of Osijek. In 2021, he enrolled in the PhD programme in Physical Chemistry at the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb. His research interests are focused on electrochemical methods, particularly the electrochemistry of antioxidants and phenolic compounds, potentiometric determination of stability constants of metal–ligand complexes, and physicochemical aspects of calcium carbonate precipitation. His doctoral research combines electrochemical techniques with kinetic and thermodynamic analysis of precipitation processes of calcium carbonate. He has actively participated in numerous national and international scientific conferences and is involved in undergraduate teaching in Physical Chemistry Laboratory 1,Advanced Physical Chemistry Laboratory, and Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory 2. He is the author of seven scientific papers indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection and one teaching manual entitled “Manual for Physical Chemistry Laboratory 1.” He is a member of the International Society of Electrochemistry (ISE).

Milenko Korica, asistent
CV:
Milenko Korica has been employed since 2016 at the Department of Chemistry, University of Osijek, where he was initially hired as a substitute assistant, then worked as a senior laboratory technician, and finally, since 2020, as a full-time assistant. He earned his PhD in 2026 from the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, specializing in Inorganic and Structural Chemistry. His scientific work focuses on the synthesis, structural characterization, and supramolecular chemistry of macrocyclic Schiff bases, coordination polymers, and porous materials. He is particularly engaged in researching crystal interactions, host–guest systems, and the properties of new inorganic and organic materials. He has participated in scientific research projects of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts (HAZU), the project of the RZC PAN, and institutional research projects. He is the author of four peer-reviewed scientific papers and an active participant in international and domestic conferences. As a indirect supervisor, he has guided numerous bachelor's and master's theses. His work also includes extensive experience in university teaching in the fields of general, physical, inorganic, and solid-state chemistry, as well as rich laboratoryexperience in synthesis, spectroscopy, thermal analysis, and crystallography. He is a member of the Croatian Chemical Society and vice president of the alumni club of the Department of Chemistry, KEMO.