Program
Maine Forest Biomaterials Week
Subject to change
Thermoformed Molded Fiber Symposium
1:00 PM Registration Opens
2:00 PM Tours of the Process Development Center and the Advanced Structures and Composites Center
3:00 PM Tours of the PDC, ASCC
5:00 – 7:00 PM Reception at Buffalo Wild Wings, Wells Conference Center
Thermoformed Molded Fiber Symposium
8:00 – 8:30 AM Registration, Continental Breakfast
8:30 – 8:35 AM Welcome
8:35 – 9:30 AM Keynote Presentation
9:30 – 10:00 AM Functionalized Agro-Based Fiber Alternative for Enhanced Performance in Thermoformed Molded Fiber Packaging – Lisandra Chacon, Senior Research Scientist, Biomaterials, Archer-Daniels Midland Company
10:00 – 10:30 AM Break
10:30 – 11:00 AM Decreased Drying Energy Demand Using Starch-Kaolin Clay Additives – Heather Starkey, Application Development Scientist, Industrial Ingredients, Primient
11:00 – 11:30 AM Unlocking the Full Potential of Molded Fiber Packaging Through Innovative Chemistry – Susan Bailey, Global Business Development Manager – Biobased Materials, Packaging Technologies, Archroma
11:30 – 12:00 PM Unlocking Fiber–Chemistry Synergy in PFAS‑Free Molded Fiber Packaging – Emma W Janco, Segment Team Leader – Moulded fibre, BIM Kemi
12:00 – 1:30 PM Lunch
1:30 – 2:00 PM Compostable Barrier Coatings for Molded Fiber Food Service Applications – Rachel Rogowski, Sr. Business Development Manager, North American Packaging – Henkel Adhesive Technologies
2:00 – 2:30 PM Improving Surface Strength in Molded Fiber Articles – Christopher Dilkus, Principal Scientist, Barriers & Molded Fiber / Global Lead, Molded Fiber Solutions, Solenis LLC
2:30 – 3:00 PM Testing Molded Fiber – Bob Versluys, Senior Technical Manager, Motus
3:00 – 3:30 PM Break
3:30 – 4:00 PM Automation of Molded Fiber Production – Justin Jeanes,Software Product Manager, Motus
4:00 – 4:30 PM Update from the TAPPI Molded Fiber Testing Group
4:30 – 5:00 PM Next-Generation Wax-Free and PFAS-Free Wet-End Oil and Grease Resistant Technology for High-Performance Molded Fiber Packaging – Sanjeev Jain, CTO & COO, Pakitgreen
5:00 – 6:30 PM Reception
6:30 – 9:00 PM Offsite Dinner (tentative)
Thermoformed Molded Fiber Symposium
7:30 – 8:15 AM Welcome and Continental Breakfast
8:15 – 9:00 AM Foodservice Packaging Policy Landscape – Carol Patterson, Vice President, Government Relations, Food Packaging Institute
9:00 – 10:00 AM Manufacturing Panel – participants to be announce
10:00 – 10:30 AM Break
10:30 – 11:00 AM MFC for Improved Barrier of Double Layer Molded Pulp – Eric Desnoes, Researcher, Innofibre
11:00 – 11:30 AM Advancing Molded Fiber Performance MFC (Micro Fibrillated Cellulose) – Christophe Bastien, Product Market Manager – Molded Products, Kadant Lamort
11:30 – 12:00 PM Unlocking the Full potential of MFC in Moulded Fiber – Ben Bulson, Business Development Manager, FiberLean Technologies
12:00 – 1:00 PM Lunch
1:00 – 1:30 PM Mulitlayer Forming – Nick Palumbo, North American Technical Sales Manager, Kiefel Fiber Division, Brueckner Group
1:30 – 2:00 PM High-speed Molded Fiber Process with Injection Foam Forming – Juho Pyrrö, Head of Valmet 3D Fiber, Valmet Technologies
2:00 – 2:20 PM Dry Molded Fiber – Thermoforming of Airlaid Web – Anders Ahlbom, Chemistry & Material Specialist, PulPac
2:20 – 2:40 PM Cellulose Dry Molding – Fabrizio Pucci,Product Development & R&D Director Rigid Packaging Technologies, Sacmi Imola S.C.
2:40 – 3:00 PM Scaling Dry Forming: From Pilot to Industrial Production Reality – Anna Altner, Founder, EVP Commercial & Customer Success, Yangi
3:00 – 3:30 PM Break
3:30 – 3:50 PM FiberOne Technology – Thomas Halletz, Managing Director, Maier Packaging GmbH, Member of the OPTIMA Packaging Group GmbH
3:50 – 4:20 PM Panel – Dry Thermoforming – participants to be announced
4:20 – 4:45 PM TBA
4:45 – 7:00 PM Reception and Poster Session
Cellulose Nanomaterials Forum & Paper Surface Science Program
8:00 – 8:30 AM Registration, Coffee & Continental Breakfast
8:30 – 8:35 AM Conference Welcome
8:35 – 9:15 AM Keynote Address: Wood Nanoscience and Nanotechnologies, Liangbing (Bing) Hu, Carol and Douglas Melamed Professor, Yale University
9:15 – 9:45 AM The AFSAC Alliance Efforts to Establish the Safety of MFC For Food-Related Applications – Jo Anne Shatkin, Vireo Advisors, LLC
9:45 – 10:15 AM Break
10:15 – 10:45 AM Microfibrillated Cellulose (MFC): High Solids Production and Barrier Coating of Fruits – J.Y. Zhu, USDA Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory
10:45 – 11:15 AM P3Nano: Expanding the Commercial Potential of Cellulose Nanomaterials – Robert Moon, Materials Research Engineer, Forest Products Lab, USDA Forest Service
11:15 – 11:45 AM TBA
11:45 – 12:45 PM Lunch
12:45 – 1:00 PM The Paper Surface Science Program – Will Gramlich, PSSP Director, Associate Professor of Chemistry, University of Maine
1:00 – 3:10 PM Presenations from UMaine Faculty on their research using cellulose nanomaterials in packaging applications:
- Aqueous modification of Cellulose Nanofibrils for Functional Materials – Will Gramlich, Associate Professor, University of Maine
- Drying Cellulose Nanofibrils with High Shear Thermokinetic Mixer – Xuefeng Zhang, Associate Professor of Sustainable Materials & Technology, University of Maine
2:40 – 3:10 PM Break
Paper Surface Science Program
3:10 – 3:30 PM PSSP Sponsor Presentation – APS Grupa
3:30 – 3:55 PM Tracking Startch Penetration When Coating Paper – Akongseh Agwana, University of Maine
3:55 – 4:20 PM Controlling Heat Sealing and Blocking of Paper Coatings – Fatemeh Aghamoosa, University of Maine
4:20 – 4:55 PM PSSP Future Directions Discussion
5:00 – 7:00 PM Evening Reception and Poster Session with Light Refreshments
Cellulose Nanomaterials Forum & Paper Surface Science Program
8:00 – 8:30 AM Continental Breakfast & Coffee
8:30 – 10:10 AM Research Presentations on Thermoformed Molded Fiber
10:10 – 10:30 AM Break
10:30 – 10:50 AM Student Research Presentations on Cellulose Nanomaterials
11:50 – 12:10 AM PSSP Future Discussions
12:10 – 1:00 PM Lunch
1:00 PM Tours