Maikel is working on a project involving core-shell CdSe nanocrystals, with strong emphasis on the organic modification of the shell.

At the University of Nijmegen, Maikel worked on the synthesis of a camphor-analogue of the germination stimulant strigol under Professor B. Zwanenburg. He worked on the sigmatropic rearrangements of chiral sulfoxides at the University of Bologna under Professor G. Mazzanti. At DSM Research, Maikel worked on the synthesis of semisynthetic antibiotics catalyzed by immobilized enzymes and the selective oxidation of primary alcohols.