1981年毕业于浙江台州师专，1987年获中国科学院大连化学物理研究所分析化学硕士学位，1993年获中国科学院生态环境研究中心环境化学博士学位

1993-1999年先后在北京大学化学系、德国Perkin-Elmer Bodensee公司、比利时Antwerp大学微量化学中心和加拿大Saskatchewan大学地质系从事博士后研究。2000年回国受聘为南开大学教授。现为江南大学教授、博士生导师。

国家杰出青年科学基金（2000，主持） 国家重点基础研究发展计划（2004，参加；2006、2010课题负责；2014，参加） 国家自然科学基金面上项目（2002、2004、2007、2010、2012、2017主持） 国家自然科学基金重点项目（2004，参加；2009、2014，主持） 天津市应用基础及前沿技术研究计划重点项目（2010、2014，主持）

在Chem、Nature Communication、Accounts of Chemical Research、Journal of the American Chemical Society、Angewandte Chemie、Advanced Materials、Analytical Chemistry、Environmental Science & Technology等杂志上发表论文230余篇，SCI他引11000余次，H-index为62。代表性论文如下： (1) Zhang, S. Y.; Yang, C.-X.; Shi, W.*; Yan, X.-P.*; Cheng, P.; Wojtas, L.; Zaworotko, M. J.*: A chiral metal-organic material that enables enantiomeric identification and purification. Chem, 2017, 3, 281-289. (2) Zhao, X.; Chen, L.-G.; Yang, C.-X.; Yan, X.-P.*: Dual-stimuli responsive and reversibly activatable theranostic nanoprobe for precision tumor-targeting and fluorescence-guided photothermal therapy Nature Communications, 2017，8: 14998 doi: 10.1038/ncomms14998. (3) Qian, H.-L.; Yang, C.-X.; Yan, X.-P.*: Bottom-up synthesis of chiral covalent organic frameworks and their bound capillaries for chiral separation. Nature Communications, 2016, 7: 12104 doi: 10.1038/ncomms12104. (4) Gu, Z.-Y.; Yang, C.-X.; Chang, N.; Yan, X.-P.*: MetalOrganic Frameworks for Analytical Chemistry: From Sample Collection to Chromatographic Separation. Accounts of Chemical Research, 2012, 45, 734-745. (5) Abdukayum, A.; Chen, J.-T.; Zhao, Q.; Yan, X.-P.*: Functional near infrared-emitting Cr3+/Pr3+ co-doped zinc gallogermanate persistent luminescent nanoparticles with superlong afterglow for in vivo targeted bioimaging. Journal of American Chemical Society, 2013, 135, 14125-14133. (6) Wu, B.-Y.; Wang, H.-F.; Chen, J.-T.; Yan, X.-P.*: Fluorescence resonance energy transfer inhibition assay for r-fetoprotein excreted during cancer cell growth using functionalized persistent luminescence nanoparticles. Journal of American Chemical Society, 2011, 133, 686-688. (7) Chang, N.; Gu, Z.-Y.; Yan, X.-P.*: Zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 nanocrystal coated capillary for molecular sieving of branched alkanes from linear alkanes along with high-resolution chromatographic separation of linear alkanes. Journal of American Chemical Society, 2010, 132, 13645-13647. (8) Wu, P.; Miao, L.-N.; Wang, H.-F.; Shao, X.-G.; Yan, X.-P.*: Metal–organic framework MIL-101 for high-resolution gas-chromatographic separation of xylene isomers and ethylbenzene. Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2011, 50, 8118-8121. (9) Z.-Y. Gu; X.-.P. Yan*: A multidimensional sensing device for the discrimination of proteins based on manganese-doped ZnS quantum dots. Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2010, 49, 1477-1480. (10) Wu, P.; Yan, X.-P.*: Doped quantum dots for chemo/biosensing and bioimaging. Chemical Society Reviews, 2013, 42, 5489-5521.

获发明专利21件。