Prof. Stathatou received her B.S./M.S. in Civil Engineering and her Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), Greece. She conducted postdoctoral research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Center for Bits & Atoms as a Bodossaki Postdoctoral Fellow, where she led interdisciplinary projects on alternative energy, environmental remediation, and bio-based materials.
The Stathatou/ ASSET Lab (Assessing Sustainable Systems and Emerging Technologies) is committed to advancing the design and evaluation of next-generation chemical engineering systems that support energy security and addition, resource resilience, and environmental stewardship. Our work spans multiple sectors, including (1) transportation and alternative energy carriers, (2) sustainably sourced materials and chemicals, and (3) water and wastewater treatment systems targeting contaminants of emerging concern. Through the development of integrated, standardized, and measurement-informed frameworks - including Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) and Techno-economic Analyses (TEA) - the ASSET Lab performs rigorous, multi-dimensional evaluations of emerging technologies, products, processes, and supply chains. These frameworks leverage field and lab-generated emissions data to produce meaningful, system-level insights that enable safer, more efficient, and robust decision-making.
Her research focuses on the development, experimental evaluation, and systems-level assessment of innovative technologies for energy, materials, and water applications. She brings expertise in environmental and fuel analysis, dynamic system modeling, and empirical data integration—with particular emphasis on complex, evolving systems such as long-term plastics recycling and the safe, efficient transportation of energy carriers. Her work has been featured in Forbes, WSB-TV, and other media outlets. She was also a TEDx Atlanta speaker, and her talk was selected as an Editor’s Pick by Global TED. In addition to modeling and systems research, Dr. Stathatou leads experimental efforts in bioremediation using microbial systems for the removal of emerging contaminants and the recovery of critical materials from drinking water sources. She also contributes to international policy development as a member of the International Maritime Organization’s Correspondence Group on Life Cycle Assessment guidelines for marine fuels.
Professor Stathatou’s teaching interests span core chemical engineering subjects at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. She is committed to courses that emphasize strong theoretical foundations and practical application of process analysis, including material and energy balances, conservation laws, phase behavior, and process variables, with a focus on their role in sustainable engineering practice. Her teaching approach integrates structured problem solving to prepare students for interdisciplinary engineering challenges. Through examples drawn from energy systems, separations, and environmentally relevant processes, she actively engages students in learning experiences that foster critical thinking, technical competence, and systems-level understanding of efficiency, resource use, and sustainability.
Postdoc, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2022
Ph.D., National Technical University of Athens, 2017
B.S./M.S, National Technical University of Athens, 2011
PM Stathatou, VM Thomas, MJ Realff, The push and pull of policy on life cycle assessment of low-carbon systems, RSC Sustainability, 2026
PM Stathatou, CE Athanasiou, MJ Realff, From Circularity to Spirality: An Integrated, Systems-Level Approach to Address the Plastics Problem, Journal of the American Chemical Society, 2025
E Anglou, F Boukouvala, PM Stathatou, A cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment of mechanochemical recycling of poly (ethylene terephthalate) waste, Chemical Engineering Journal, 168719, 2025
PM Stathatou, E Anglou, Y Chang, J Sweet, A Ganesan, N Yutthasaksunthorn, ... & C Sievers, Enabling Informed Decisions on Pyrolysis: A Key to Turn the Tide on Plastics Recycling, ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, 2025
PM Stathatou, I Petrunia, T Barenthin, ... & N Gershenfeld, Marine Scrubbers vs Low-Sulfur Fuels: A Comprehensive Well-To-Wake Life Cycle Assessment Supported by Measurements Aboard an Ocean-Going Vessel, Environmental Science & Technology, 2025