NC State University to Host “Progress in Paper Physics Seminar 2014”

Posted on July 31, 2014 by

By Guest Blogger, Dr. Joel Pawlak; Asst. Professor, Dept. of Forest Biomaterials

From September 8-11, 2014, the international paper physics community is coming to Raleigh and NC State University for its annual meeting. This is a group of scientists dedicated to understanding the behavior of paper from a physical standpoint.

Over the years, NC State has had a number of professors involved in this community. Perhaps some of you alumni remember taking a class from Dr. Olf, Dr. Kocurek, Dr. Ram, Dr. Rojas, or even me, Dr. Pawlak? These faculty members have all taken part in the paper physics community over the years.

This year’s meeting is part of annual gathering of this paper physics community that rotates around the world. These meetings date back to the 1960’s when the concept of describing the properties of paper from a fundamental standpoint was first explored.

Early work described the tensile strength of paper, formation of paper, bonding in paper, and the strength of single papermaking fibers. Over the years, the science has continued to advance and involves a diverse set scientific principles that describe the water resistance of paper, barrier properties of paper, and the compression strength of paper. Advanced mathematical modeling of paper, state of the art imaging and x-ray tomography are all now staples of the scientific approaches used by the community.

This year, the conference will be hosted by NC State and sponsored by Domtar and MWV.

This will be the first time NC State will host the conference and provides us an opportunity to showcase the strength of paper science and engineering program at NC State. The focus of the conference has evolved to include emerging areas of paper industry including novel products and materials from forest products.

The conference has been timed to coincide with the annual NC State Pulp and Paper Foundation meeting. If you are planning to come to Raleigh this fall for the foundation meeting, consider extending your time and taking part in the paper physics conference earlier in the week.

I look forward to seeing in Raleigh this fall and I hope that you will come to both the paper physics conference and the annual foundation meeting!

View the preliminary technical program and register for the conference>>

NC State University Paper Science & Engineering Program to Celebrate 60 Years of Success

Posted on July 31, 2014 by

The Paper Science & Engineering(PSE) program in the College of Natural Resources at North Carolina State University will celebrate a tradition of success with a 60th Anniversary Celebration in September 2014. Alumni, industry partners, donors, faculty, staff, and students are invited to join us.

Three days of activities are planned for September 10-12 including: an Open House at Biltmore, Robertson and Pulp and Paper Labs, a Celebration Banquet, a Paper Industry Career Fair, a Golf Tournament, a Corn Hole Tournament, Lunch at Lonnie Poole Golf Course, “Insider” Tours of campus, and the NC State Pulp & Paper Foundation Annual Meeting!

One of the oldest and most respected paper science and engineering programs in the world, NC State has been building industry leaders and supporting a robust, innovative and sustainable industry since the creation of the Pulp and Paper program and the Pulp and Paper Foundation.

Students of the program are highly valued by companies as summer interns and semester co-ops. Nearly 100% of students graduate with multiple job offers with starting salaries among the highest at NC State University.

PSE graduates make significant contributions to the paper industry, other chemical process industries, and many other professional arenas. Our alumni include vice-presidents, mill managers, technical managers, research directors, consultants, sales personnel, business owners, professors, teachers, lawyers, doctors, and clergymen.

With a long history of outstanding student care and thorough engineering education, the PSE program has much of which to be proud.

A fine testament to NC State’s land grant mission, PSE’s research and technical service programs support the state’s Forest Products industry – an industry that contributes almost 30 billion dollars annually to North Carolina’s economy.

The program’s faculty has been recognized with numerous honors including six TAPPI Fellows, the highest honor awarded by the Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry, more than any other institution.

This coming year, PSE expects to have 170 undergraduates and 40 graduate students.

For details of the NC State Paper Science & Engineering 60th Anniversary Celebration
visit: http://go.ncsu.edu/pse60th

Contact: Jennifer Piercy, (919) 515-7709 jennifer_piercy@ncsu.edu

McCord to Serve as Research Associate Dean for NC State College of Natural Resources

Posted on July 31, 2014 by

Dr. Marian G. McCord has been selected as Associate Dean for Research in the College of Natural Resources at NC State University.

Dr. McCord is currently a professor with appointments in the Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry, and Science at North Carolina State University, the Joint UNC/NCSU Department of Biomedical Engineering, and is an adjunct associate professor of medicine at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

She holds a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering from Brown University, as well as a Master of Science in Bioengineering and a Ph.D. in Textiles and Polymer Science both from Clemson University. She joined the faculty of the College of Textiles at NC State in 1994 and leads NC State’s Global Health Initiative.

Dr. McCord sees her research field as “textiles as interventions” – i.e., textiles that prevent or treat disease, or improve human health and well-being. Some of her global health related projects include nonchemical insecticidal bed nets and low cost hemostatic bandages. She is a scientific advisor to Sustainable Health Enterprises (SHE), a social venture dedicated to meeting the needs for safe and affordable sanitary products for women in the developing world. The College of Natural Resources is also a partner in the SHE project.

Dr. McCord has been the co-director of the Atmospheric Plasma Laboratory at the College of Textiles at NC State University for 14 years, and is a cofounder of Katharos, Inc., a company that aims to provide phosphate filtration solutions for end-stage renal disease patients.

She has made significant contributions to her field including serving on the editorial board of the Journal of Fiber Bioengineering and Informatics, as an officer and executive committee member of the Triangle Global Health Consortium Advisory Board and the steering committee of the NC One Health Collaborative.

Recently Dr. McCord was recognized as one of 125 Transformational Women at NC State for her work as Director of the Global Health Initiative and for her work with SHE.

“Over the last 20 years, Marian McCord has built an interdisciplinary portfolio of research focused on improving human health and wellness by developing novel textiles that prevent and treat disease. She has a proven track record assembling and leading multidisciplinary research teams and has received funding from a wide variety of sources.” says Dr. Mary Watzin, dean of the College of Natural Resources. “Through her work, Marian has earned a national and international reputation for solving practical global health challenges. I am delighted that she is willing to take on this new challenge and am confident that she will bring creativity, energy, and a genuine appreciation of power of collaboration to the College of Natural Resources.”

“I’m looking forward to joining CNR, and to working with the faculty, staff and students to advance the College’s research initiative” says Dr. McCord. “I think that CNR is the right place for me to be able to make a significant impact in addressing some of the greatest challenges facing society today.”

Originally from Newport Rhode Island, Dr. McCord lives in Apex with her husband and two children. She will assume her duties as associate dean of research on August 1, 2014 and will hold academic rank in the Department of Forest Biomaterials.

Out of the Classroom and Into the Fire

Posted on July 10, 2014 by

At NC State University, our students Think And Do. Nowhere is that more evident than at the College of Natural Resources’ Forestry Summer Camp during Fire Week.

Students in Forestry 265 participated in a controlled burn in G.W. Hill Demonstration Forest as a step towards becoming certified firefighters.

The operational burn was for instructional purposes and included 23 students and eight professionals from the State Forest Service, the Park Service and the Nature Conservancy.

Adair and Woodbury Recognized for Excellence

Posted on July 10, 2014 by

This summer, Erin Adair and Patti Woodbury, two staff members with the College of Natural Resources, were among those honored as Award for Excellence recipients at NC State University – the most prestigious honor bestowed upon non-faculty employees.

Erin Adair

Patti Woodbury

The award recognizes notable contributions that are above and beyond an employee’s normal job responsibilities. Recipients have demonstrated excellence in serving their departments or divisions, the NC State campus community, the State of North Carolina, or the lives of others.

Dean Mary Watzin joined Chancellor Randy Woodson at a campus-wide ceremony to confer the honors. In addition to the award itself, each received eight hours of paid time off and a $250 check.

Erin Adair is an Instructional Technologist for the Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism Management. Patti Woodbury is a Program Manager with the college’s Development Office.