UMaine Professor Named TAPPI Fellow
Contact: Joseph Genco, (207) 581-2284; Aimee Dolloff, (207) 581-3777
ORONO, Maine – A University of Maine professor has received the distinction of being named a 2009 Fellow of the Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry (TAPPI) for his extraordinary contributions to the industry.
Chemical Engineering Professor Joseph Genco was selected as one of seven TAPPI members to be named a 2009 Fellow, which is an honorary title bestowed upon less than three percent of TAPPI’s membership. The designation is given only to those who have made extraordinary technical or service contributions to the pulp and paper market or the association.
Genco has taught pulp and paper courses, in addition to many of the core chemical engineering courses at UMaine for 35 years. He became a member of TAPPI in 1976.
“Many of my students are in the paper industry and have progressed very well,” he says.
Genco’s research deals primarily with the delignification of wood during paper formation, and he holds three patents on the subject.
During the papermaking process, lignin is removed from the wood and can be used for a variety of things, including fuel. Currently, Genco and his colleagues are working on the development of a process for producing carbon fibers from lignin extracted from wood. Carbon fibers can be used as a reinforcing material to reduce the weight of automobiles and significantly improve fuel efficiency.
Upon the announcement of his award, TAPPI said that Genco’s contributions to the industry greatly have increased the technical knowledge to industry professionals working in the areas of delignification and paper formation. Genco previously was awarded the 2007 Johan Richter Award from TAPPI for his work on understanding commercial oxygen delignification systems.
The criteria for being selected a Fellow include the following:
· Publication of articles and books
· Patents granted
· Directions of important research or engineering work
· Management of major projects resulting in acknowledged improvements and new developments
· Leadership assignments in TAPPI
· Service to other organizations and/or to the public
“TAPPI is proud to welcome these exemplary industry leaders into the ranks of TAPPI Fellow,” according to the association’s press release announcing the awards. “This year’s award winners enter a select group that is less than 1 percent of TAPPI’s membership. As such, they are rightly considered industry thought leaders, and they richly merit the acclaim from TAPPI and their fellow members.”
There have been 429 TAPPI Fellows from 14 countries since 1968.
TAPPI has about 14,000 members worldwide and for more than 90 years, the association has served four segments of the global industry:
· pulp and paper technical,
· pulp and paper operations,
· converting and packaging, and
· suppliers and consultants.
Through information exchange, events, and networking opportunities, TAPPI helps members elevate their performance by providing solutions that lead to better, faster, and more cost-effective ways of doing business.
The TAPPI Fellows Class of 2009 will be inducted at TAPPI’s Annual Fellows Luncheon during PaperCon’09, May 31-June 3 in St. Louis, Missouri.