Michalis Vardavoulias
PyroGenesis Managing Director and Chief Technology Officer
Michalis Vardavoulias has more than 30 years of experience in Materials Science and Surface Modification Technologies. He obtained both, his Engineering Diploma in Metallurgy and his Ph.D degree (Bodosakis Foundation fellowship) in Materials Science, from the National Technical University of Athens, Department of Mining and Metallurgical Engineering, Laboratory of Materials Technology.
He worked for 5 years as a Senior Research Engineer in Tribology and Surface Modification Technologies at the Centre of Materials of the “Ecole des Mines” of Paris.
He organised and managed the Thermal Spray and Tribology Department at EBETAM/CERECO (Ceramics and Refractories RTD Centre, Greece).
Between 1998 and 2000 he was the Project Manager of the Hellenic Innovation Relay Centre.
In 2000 he co-founded PyroGenesis SA, an innovative SME dealing with Advanced Materials and Coating Technologies, and he is since that date Managing Director and Chief Technology Officer in the company.
He has participated in more than 35 funded EU and National Research Projects and was the coordinator in some of them. He has published more than 130 original research and technical papers in international scientific journals and conference proceedings.
In 2007 and 2008, Dr Vardavoulias was a visiting Professor of Materials Science and Technology in the Department of Production Engineers, Polytechnic School, Democritus University of Thrace.
Since 2012, he is the Greek Delegate in European Thermal Spray Association
In the last years his main interest is the commercialization of new Thermal Spray applications
A.K. Basak, S. Achanta, J.-P. Celis, M. Vardavoulias, P. Matteazzi, “Structure and mechanical properties of plasma sprayed nanostructured, alumina and FeCuAl–alumina cermet coatings”, Surface & Coatings Technology , 202 (11) (2008) 2368–2373.
D. Zois, M. Vardavoulias, A. Lekatou, I. Panagiotopoulos, A. Vazdirvanidis, « A Comparative Microstructural Investigation of Nanostructured and Conventional Al2O3 Coatings Deposited by Plasma Spraying”, Journal of Thermal Spray Technology, 17 (5-6), (2008), pp. 887-894.
Zois, A. Lekatou, M. Vardavoulias, “ A microstructure and mechanical property investigation on thermally sprayed nanostructured ceramic coatings before and after a sintering treatment”, Surface & Coatings Technology, 2009, 204, 15-27.
D. Zois; A. Lekatou; M. Vardavoulias; A. Vazdirvanidis, “Nanostructured alumina coatings manufactured by air plasma spraying: Correlation of properties with the raw powder microstructure”, Journal of Alloys and Compounds, Vol. 495 (2) (2010) p.611-616.
S.Kamnis, Sai Gu, and M. Vardavoulias, “The Influence of Powder Porosity on the Bonding Mechanism at the Impact of Thermally Sprayed Solid Particles”, METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A VOLUME 41A, DECEMBER 2010—3517.
S.Kamnis, S.Gu* and M.Vardavoulias, “Numerical Study to Examine the Effect of Porosity on In-Flight Particle Dynamics”, Journal of Thermal Spray Technology, Volume 20, Number 3, March 2011 , pp. 630-637(8).
D. Zois, A. Lekatou, M. Vardavoulias, T. Vaimakis, A.E. Karantzalis, “Partially amorphous stainless steel coatings: Microstructure, annealing behavior and statistical optimization of spray parameters”, Surface & Coatings Technology 206 (2011) 1469–1483
A.K. Basak, J.-P. Celis, M. Vardavoulias, P. Matteazzi, “Effect of nanostructuring and Al alloying on friction and wear behaviour of thermal sprayed WC–Co coatings”, Surface & Coatings Technology 206 (2012) 3508–3516
A.K. BASAK, J.-P. CELIS, M. VARDAVOULIAS, and P. MATTEAZZI, “Coefficient of Friction Measured from Nano- to Macro-Normal Loads on Plasma Sprayed Nanostructured Cermet Coatings”, METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A, VOLUME 45A, FEBRUARY 2014, pp.1049-1056.
