Leonidas Matsakas

Leonidas Matsakas serves as an Associate Professor in Biochemical Process Engineering at Luleå University of Technology's Department of Civil, Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering. His research focuses on sustainable conversion of forest residues, aquatic biomass, and industrial waste streams into advanced bio-based products through zero-waste approaches.

Dr. Matsakas earned his PhD in 2015 from the National Technical University of Athens. His scientific expertise spans lignin structural characterization, organosolv fractionation processes, and plastic waste upcycling. He has pioneered research in adapting biomass treatment technologies for plastic waste conversion, with significant contributions to sustainable biorefinery systems.

His recent publications demonstrate strong trends in machine learning-assisted microbial engineering, carbon capture materials, and circular economy applications for both biobased and synthetic polymers. The work integrates systems biology with synthetic biology to address environmental challenges through data-driven approaches.

• Kungl. Skytteanska Samfundet award for young promising researchers (2020)
• Recognized among top 2% of world's leading scientists (Stanford University, 2019-2022)

As principal investigator, Matsakas has secured over 30 research grants from FORMAS, Swedish Energy Agency, VINNOVA, EU Horizon 2020, and EIT RawMaterials. He currently leads the European Bioholistic consortium (LTU, ETH Zürich, LIST Luxembourg) and received a FORMAS future research leaders grant in 2019 as sole applicant. His funding portfolio includes projects like BIOMAC, Biolift, Lignomin, and Eco-force fuels.

Matsakas directs the Biochemical Process Engineering research group, which specializes in integrated biorefinery concepts, microbial community engineering, and sustainable materials development. The team employs advanced omics technologies and computational modeling to optimize resource conversion processes.