Dr. Andreas Sapalidis is a senior researcher at the Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, National Centre for Scientific Research Demokritos, Greece. He holds a bachelor’s in Petroleum Engineering, an MSc, and a PhD in Polymer Science from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. With over 20 years at the Membranes and Materials for Environmental Separations Laboratory (MESL), he has co-authored 65 research papers, presented at 100+ conferences, and is a co-inventor on three international patents. Dr. Sapalidis coordinated the Horizon 2020 IA intelWATT project, IDEA EranetMed, and has contributed to numerous other research projects.

The research programme is centred on the advancement of nanostructured and nanocomposite materials, with particular emphasis on their characterisation and assessment for environmental and energy-related applications. Key research areas include:

• Synthesis and characterisation of state-of-the-art nanocomposite polymeric materials and membranes.
• Process development and evaluation of water and industrial wastewater treatment technologies, with objectives such as minimising water usage, promoting reuse, recovering valuable substances and remediating hazardous compounds, in alignment with sustainability and circular economy principles.
• Design and implementation of online water quality monitoring systems.
• Development and characterisation of porous materials through advanced analytical techniques for application in depollution processes, including COâ‚‚ and SOâ‚‚ capture, heavy metals remediation, and catalysis.
• Fabrication of hybrid ceramic membranes for gas and liquid separation processes.
• Development of hybrid organic (e.g., activated carbons) and inorganic adsorbents (such as zeolites and clays).
• Implementation of in-situ experimental setups for the investigation of the aforementioned properties.
• Formulation of hybrid materials generated from the interaction between modified polymers and nanostructured carbon forms (including carbon nanotubes, carbon nanodiscs, and graphene).
• Preparation of superhydrophobic coatings based on hybrid nanoparticles composed of polymers and nanostructured carbons, tailored for use in membrane and coating technologies.

Sustainable Development Goals Alignment