Ioannis Karatasios is Researcher, member of Ceramics and Composite Materials Group, at the Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology of NCSR “Demokritos”. He owns a BSc in Archaeological and Architectural Conservation from the University of West Attica (former Technological Educational Institute of Athens), Greece (1998) and a PhD in Conservation Science from De Montfort University, UK (2005), on the development of lime-based mortars for the conservation of architectural monuments with enhanced durability against sulphates (SOx).

He joined “Demokritos” in 2001, where he has been employed in several competitive National and EU research projects as research scientist, with an initial employment background in the Hellenic Ministry of Culture. Since 2007 he was working as Research Officer and in 2017 he was elected in the position of Researcher.

His research work focuses on the development of innovative conservation materials for built heritage (repair mortars, consolidation and surface protection), the technological study of archaeological materials (mortars and ceramics) and the pathology of architectural monuments. His research activities also include the effects of climate change on cultural heritage monuments and sites, as well as mitigation and resilience actions.

He is a Chartered Surveyor for archaeological and historical monuments and voting member of the Hellenic Committee for Standardisation ELOT/ TC 96. Until 2017, he was the national representative to the European Committee for Standardisation CEN/TC 346/ WG2: Materials constituting cultural property.

He has (co)authored more than 70 publications in scientific journals and reviewed conference proceedings, 1 patent and 6 book chapters.