Richard Chandra to Receive
American Chemical Society Graduate Student Award

ATLANTA, GEORGIA—January 28, 2003— At the spring meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS) in New Orleans, Richard Chandra will receive the ACS Graduate Student Award. Richard will be given an individual plaque and a cash award honoring his accomplishments. He will also deliver an oral presentation of his research findings. The award will be presented to Richard during the Anselme Payen Award banquet to recognize the research presented in his paper Biografting Phenolic Compounds onto High-Kappa Kraft Pulps.

The Graduate Student Award is managed by the Cellulose, Paper, and Textile Division (CELL) of ACS and is given annually for the paper that best advances state-of-the-art research on the chemical nature of cellulose, paper, and textiles. In his Ph.D. research studies, Richard has aggressively worked to define the fundamental chemistry/paper physics involved in biograftingof high-kappa kraft pulps via laccase. He has accepted the challenge of employing laccase to catalyze the grafting of low-molecular-weight phenolicsand other readily oxidizable compounds onto high-kappa kraft pulps when no other researchers had demonstrated this was possible.

In Chandra’s M.S. research, he authored three peer--reviewed articles and presented at three conferences. Over a period of approximately two-and-a-half years in the Ph.D. program, he has defined this field of research and contributed three peer-reviewed articles, two manuscripts (currently under review), and six conference presentations.

Richard has also made significant contributions in the field of biobleaching, providing an understanding of the basic chemistry of laccase-mediator systems. The studies were initiated by Richard to develop a basis from which laccase delignification technologies could be used for biografting. The results are summarized in Biotechnology in the Pulp and Paper Industry: 8th ICBPPI Meeting in an article titled “Delving into the Fundamental LMS Delignification of High-Kappa Kraft Pulps.”

Dr. Art Ragauskas, his Ph.D graduate supervisor, said, “Richard’s award is a credit to his dedication to his research, his innovation, and the impact of his studies in the field of fiber modification.”

Congratulations, Richard, on your success!