Dimitrios Bikiaris is a full professor at the Chemistry Department (laboratory of Polymer Chemistry and Technology) of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. His research interests include the synthesis and characterization of polyesters, polymer composites and nanocomposites, surface modification of nanofillers, synthesis and characterization of copolymers, modification of natural polymers, investigation and application of new biocompatible polymers for tissue engineering and pharmaceutical uses, preparation and study of drug solid dispersions in polymeric matrices and drug nanoencapsulation targeted release using biocompatible polymers, chitosan nanoparticles, IOs nanoparticles and polymer-drug complexation. His work has been attributed directly to 310 publications in international journals, with 9870 citations and h-index 55. He has been the leading project manager and participated to 38 research projects (national, European and international), and has also published 4 book chapters and 15 international patents. His research group consists of more than 15 members and holds strong collaborations with International Universities and Research Centres, Greek Universities and Industrial partners. He has participated in more than 130 international and 40 national conferences, having 80 oral and invited presentations and 190 poster presentations. He served as a reviewer in more than 120 international scientific journals and as an editorial board member of 5 scientific journals. Furthermore, he has participated in reviewing panels of the Hellenic and European Commission (FP7 and Horizon2020) and as evaluator for national research programs in various European countries.

Saber CHATTI received his PhD in macromolecular chemistry in 2001 at the University Paris South - Orsay (Paris XI) after working on the valorization of biomass derivatives by the synthesis of biomaterials under microwaves irradiations.

He undertook two years (2002-2003) of postdoctoral position with Prof. Hans R. Kricheldorf (University of Hamburg, Germany) sponsored by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in Bonn.

In 2004 he was appointed assistant professor at the National Institute of Physical Chemical Analysis in Tunis and professor in November 2013 at the same institute.

In  June 2012, he received a graduate fellowship for 5 years from the CNRS in France to elaborate and characterize new materials in order to extract a large varieties of molecules of interest in water and soil such as : Glyphosate, Atrazines, polyphenols, aliphatic acids,… and also the synthesis and characterization of several biopolymers from sugar diols (1,4:3-6-Dianhydrohexitols) such as polyethers, polycarbonates, polyesters, polyether-sulfones and polyetherketones.

Marc Delgado-Aguilar is docent and researcher at University of Girona, in Spain. He received his PhD in Chemical Engineering in 2015. He has participated in several committees and more than 50 international and national conferences as oral and invited speaker. Although his short age, his work has been already attributed directly to 50 publications in indexed journals (mostly Q1) since 2015. His research interests include production, characterization and applications of nanostructured cellulose, papermaking, natural fiber reinforced thermoplastics based composites, nanocomposites, wood-based composites, life cycle assessment, nanocellulose-based hydrogels and aerogels, among others. He has chaired several international conferences and is an usual reviewer in reputable scientific journals.

Dr. Delgado-Aguilar is currently the Spanish Coordinator of an Ibero-American network (NANOCELIA) which aims at developing industrially feasible methodologies for cellulose nanofibers production and exploring novel applications and opportunities for this nanostructured bio-based and biodegradable material

Since 1999, Prof. Filip Du Prez is heading the Polymer Chemistry Research group (PCR) in which currently 25 researchers focus on the development of new polymer structures, exploration of powerful polymer functionalization methods and the design of polymer materials for high-value applications.

The three main PCR research themes are:

1) ‘From polymer functionalization to absolute control’

2) ‘Dynamic and self-healing polymeric materials’

3) ‘Giving renewable polymers function(ality)’.

A couple of actual topics are sequence controlled polymers, vitrimers, novel click chemistries in macromolecular science, functional polymers from renewable resources and self-healing polymers.

This research resulted in about 250 A1 publications (more than 6700 citations, h-index 44), more than 10 book chapters, 11 patent applications and more than 20 (inter)national awards for the PCR- coworkers in the last 5 years. In 2014, he received the UGent Prometheus research award for several groundbreaking contributions to research in polymer science. He is promotor-coordinator of the UGent Chemtech valorization consortium, including 2 business developers, that takes care of the interface between chemistry research at UGent and the industry. In 2008, he had a Visiting Professor position at the CAMD Research Centre (UNSW, Sydney). In the same year, he became editor of the European Polymer Journal. Since 2016, he is the representative of the Belgian Polymer Group in the European Polymer Federation (EPF).

Jean-François Gérard was graduated as MsC from Department of Materials Science, INSA Lyon, and Université St Etienne in 1980. He obtained his PhD degree in Macromolecular Materials Science from INSA Lyon in 1985 for a research dedicated to the synthesis and characterization of self-emulsifying zwitterionic polyurethanes sponsored by St Gobain Co. He obtained a Senior Scientist position at CNRS in 1985 within the URA 507/UMR 5627 CNRS laboratory in Lyon. In 1997, he moved from his DR CNRS Senior Scientist position to a full Professor position at INSA Lyon. He has been Head of the Ingénierie des Matériaux Polymères laboratory (UMR 5223 CNRS) from 2001 to 2011, Vice-President for Research of INSA Lyon from 2011 to 2016, and he is now Vice Scientific Director of the Institut de Chimie CNRS. He acted as vice-co-ordinator of the Network of Excellence ‘Nanostructured and Functional Polymers and Nanocomposites’ from 2004 to 2008 and from 2007, he is the Vice-President of the European Center for Nanostructured Polymers (ECNP). Jean-Francois Gérard is the General Chairman of the European Polymer Federation. His major interests relate to polymer science, i.e. soft mat (polymer networks, supramolecular polymers and interfaces, wettability, colloidal suspensions), nanostructured polymers and nanostructuration processes, nanocomposites, hybrid organic inorganic nanomaterials, (nanoblends, polymer confinement, nanostructuration from oxo-clusters, ionic liquids, nanoparticles, etc), interfaces and interphases in multiphase polymer materials, polymer surfaces, adhesion processes in multiphasic materials, etc. He has published more than 250 original papers, 10 book chapters, and 13 patents and gave more than 170 invited lectures in conferences.

Dr. Hern Kim is currently a professor of Energy Science and Technology at Myongji University, South Korea. He received his BSc (1982) and MSc (1984) of Chemical Engineering from Seoul National University and PhD (1991) of Chemical Engineering from University of Houston, U.S.A. He is the director of both Smart Living Innovation Technology Center and CCS Innovation Technology Center. His research interests are focused on fundamental aspects and applications of advanced materials including inorganic-organic hybrid nanomaterials, nanofibers, membranes, ionic liquids, (electro-/photo-)catalysts, stimuli-responsive materials which can be used for biorefinery, smart windows, CO2 capture/storage/conversion/utilization, electrochemical sensors, battery/supercapacitor, water splitting, separation processes, and so on. He has published over 140 papers since 2007 in SCI Indexed journals.

Mária Omastová, PhD., D.Sc., received Ph.D. in macromolecular chemistry in 1993 from the Polymer Institute Slovak Academy of Sciences (PI SAS) in Bratislava, and D.Sc. in 2009. After postdoctoral tenure at the Leibniz Institute of Polymer Research Dresden, Germany, she joined the Department of Composite Thermoplastic of PI SAS as research fellow.

Her research interests are focused on conducting polymers, conductive polymeric micro- and nano-composites, their application as sensors and actuators, modification of carbon-based nanofillers, surface and interphase characterization of polymeric, organic and inorganic materials by X- ray photoelectron spectroscopy, etc.

She published about 140 peer-reviewed papers, and 6 book chapters, which are cited more than 2700 times.

M. Omastová is now head of Department of Composite Materials at PI SAS. She has been principal investigator of 10 national projects, and many bilateral and multilateral projects, COST projects, and principal investigator for PI SAS of European project FP7 and Horizon 2020. She has chaired several international conferences and is a usual reviewer in reputable scientific journals.

Elisabetta Ranucci is Full Professor in Industrial Chemistry at the University of Milan, where she teaches classes of Polymer Chemistry. She gained her doctor degree in Chemistry at the University of Pisa. From 1998 to 2001 she was visiting Professor at the Kunglig Tekniska Högskolan – KTH, Stockholm, Department of Polymer Technology, where in 2001 was appointed as “Docent”- in Polymer Technology by an international jury.

Her research interests focus on:

- Synthesis of chiral polymers for molecular recognistion. Polymer self-assembly.

- Polymers for biotechnological applications: bioactive, biodegradable and biocompatible polymers with antiviral and antimalarial activity; hydrogels as scaffolds for tissue engineering applications.

- Decoration and stabilization of inorganic nanoparticles with bioactive polymers.

- Multifunctional composite resins for the absorption of inorganic and organic pollutants from wastewater.

- Bioinspired polymers with flame-retardant activity.

- Polymers from renewable sources.

She has published more than 130 papers and filed 16 original patent applications. Her current h-index (Scopus) is 28.

From 2009 to 2016 she has acted as external referee of Start Grant and Consolidator Applications, European Research Council calls.

Armand Soldera is currently a professor at the Université de Sherbrooke (Quebec, Canada), and director of the Quebec Centre for Functional Materials (www.cqmfscience.com). He received a Ph.D. in Molecular Physical Chemistry for his work on liquid crystals from the Université de Strasbourg in France.  He was a postdoctoral fellow, first at Université Laval in Québec, Canada, working in polymer and liquid crystal sciences, and at RUG in Groningen, Netherlands working on scattering of polymers.  In 1994, he was hired by the French Commissariat à l’Énergie Atomique (CEA) as a research engineer in the military division, where he began to work on molecular simulations of polymers.  He joined the Université de Sherbrooke in 2002 as an assistant professor in the chemistry department, became associate professor in 2005, full professor in 2009, and department chair from 2010 to 2016. He founded the Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Matter (lpcm.recherche.usherbrooke.ca).  He was adjunct professor at ISMANS (Le Mans, F.) from 1996 to 2016.  His research focuses on the study of the intimate link between micro and macroscopic scales in soft matter (polymers, liquid crystals, and organic glasses).  He merges together simulations and experiments following a multi-scale approach.

Dr. Mehmet Atilla Tasdelen was born in Gaziantep, Turkey. He completed his primary and secondary education in this town. He was accepted to Chemistry Department of Ege University, Izmir in 1996. After his graduation in 2000, he was accepted as a M.Sc. student to Istanbul Technical University, Polymer Science and Technology Programme. He has received his M.Sc (2002) and Ph.D. degree (2008) under the supervision of Prof. Yusuf Yagci. He also conducted research in Ghent University, Belgium in 2007. He joined Yalova University, Department of Polymer Engineering in July, 2010 as an assistant professor and in February 2013 he was promoted to full associate professor. His research topics focus on the design of functional polymer architectures and polymer materials, photoinitiated cationic and radical polymerization, controlled polymerization techniques, ‘click’ chemistry and nanocomposites. He is co-author of more than 90 original research papers and several book chapters. Dr. Tasdelen is currently serving as associate editor for Journal of the Turkish Chemical Society, Section A: Chemistry and Chemistry Africa and sitting in the international advisory editorial board of Dutch Journal of Chemical Technology, Designed Monomers and Polymers and Current Applied Polymer Science.

Tobias Robert received his PhD degree in organic chemistry from the University of Cologne (Germany) in 2010 in the group of Hans-Günther Schmalz. Because of his interest in green chemistry, he then moved to Kingston (Canada) where he worked as a postdoctoral researcher at Queen’s University in the groups of Philip Jessop and Michael Cunningham on CO2-switchable polymers for water purification applications. After another postdoctoral stay with Martin Oestreich at the TU Berlin funded by the DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service), he joined the department of Surface Technology of the Fraunhofer-Institute for Wood Research in 2013 as research scientist. His research interests focus on novel bio-based monomers, the development of new renewable polymeric materials for coating and UV-curing applications, and the integrated utilization of biomass waste streams as source of innovative materials