ATLANTA, Ga. – Dr. Michael Paleologou, Group Leader, FPInnovations, has been named winner of the 2015 Research and Development Technical Award and William H. Aiken Prize byTAPPI’s International Research Management Committee (IRMC). This award is given for outstanding accomplishments or contributions which have advanced the technology of the paper and related industries in the field of research and development. The award will be presented to Dr. Paleologou at PaperCon 2015 in Atlanta, Georgia.

“Dr. Paleologou is an accomplished scientist with over 25 years of R&D experience in the pulp and paper industry. He has an impressive track record of innovation and has led the development of cutting-edge technologies that have been implemented in mills throughout the world,”notes Larry N. Montague, president and CEO of TAPPI. “Paleologou’s career as an innovator and manager of R&D teams is exemplary and consistent with the both the criteria and spirit that define the Aiken Prize.”

At FPInnovations, Dr. Paleologou currently leads a team of scientists, engineers and technicians in developing technologies for the production of chemicals, materials and fuels from forest biomass and forest biomass processing operations. His research interests include forest biorefinery (recovery of lignin, hemicellulose, methanol, terpenes and carbon dioxide from biomass processing operations and development of value-added products and/or uses for these chemicals); process integration and economics; black and red liquor characterization; chemical recovery; chemical separation and regeneration technologies for kraft, sulphite and BCTMP mill system closure.

Dr. Paleologou has worked for FPInnovations (now PAPRICAN) for nearly three decades, where he has led groups in the development of novel process chemical technologies, including chemical recovery and the valorization of lignin. His work has led to over 150 published documents, including 40 papers in refereed journals, 55 conference papers, 3 monograph papers, and 14 US and Canadian Patents.

Dr. Paleologou holds a B.Sc. in Chemistry from Simon Fraser University, and a Ph.D. in Chemistry from McGill University.