Rate My Professor Paul Kilmartin

Paul Kilmartin is a Professor of Chemical Sciences in the School of Chemical Sciences, Faculty of Science, at the University of Auckland. He completed his PhD in 1997 at the same institution on the electrochemistry of conducting polymers, having joined the academic staff immediately upon graduation. Prior to starting his doctorate in 1993, he taught Year 13 chemistry, Year 12 mathematics, and religious studies for two years at St Bede’s College in Christchurch. In 2003, he contributed to establishing the University’s postgraduate Wine Science Programme at the Tāmaki campus, leading it for a decade before its relocation to the Goldwater Wine Science Centre on Waiheke Island, where he continues to supervise up to 15 postgraduates annually and teach an undergraduate course to approximately 90 students twice a year.

Kilmartin’s primary research focuses on electrochemistry and wine chemistry, utilizing electrochemical sensors to monitor oxidation-reduction processes in wine maturation, antioxidants, conducting polymers, and antimicrobial materials for food packaging. He leads a $9.8 million five-year Endeavour Fund project (2023), collaborating with Auckland University of Technology, Scion, and University of Canterbury, to convert grape marc into high-value products like foods, papers, and pharmaceuticals. As Deputy Director of the Centre for Green Chemical Science, he promotes sustainable innovations. Elected a Ngā Ahurei Fellow by Royal Society Te Apārangi in 2023, his over 150 publications, including recent articles in Food Chemistry (2024) on Pinot Noir phenolics and Sauvignon Blanc alternatives to SO2, and in Advanced Functional Materials (2023) on supercapacitors with antimicrobial properties, have accumulated more than 13,000 Google Scholar citations, significantly impacting New Zealand’s wine industry through enhanced understanding of varietal flavors and sustainability.