The Arne Asplund Mechanical Pulping Award 2016 granted to Tomas Björkqvist, Mikael Lucander and Olli Tuovinen

Valmet Corporation's press release on May 13, 2016 at 12:00 p.m. EET

The Arne Asplund Mechanical Pulping Award 2016 has been granted to Tomas Björkqvist, Mikael Lucander and Olli Tuovinen. The award is given out every two years by Arne Asplund Mechanical Pulping Award Foundation and it promotes the development of new technology for the manufacture of high-yield pulp.

The awarded team has worked together in a systematic way, from laboratory to full scale operation, to show that their hypothesis about a novel surface for grinding stones is valid. The basic idea in their invention is to cover a metal segment stone surface with a defined diamond grid, including finding a proper geometry for the grid and fastening method for diamonds. The new type of grinding stone with diamond covered surface is known as "Galileo technology". The technology is already established and has spread worldwide.

The main achievement for this innovation is the possible energy saving in grinding of wood in the range of 150 - 500 kWh/ton, depending on pulp grade and other operational factors. Simultaneously the shive level is considerably decreased.

Information about the award recipients

Tomas Björkqvist received his PhD degree in 2002 from Tampere University of Technology in Finland. After a long academic career, he is currently a Senior Research Fellow at Tampere University of Technology.

Mikael Lucander, with a M.Sc. degree in Polymer Chemistry from Helsinki University is retired after a long career at KCL in Finland where he held a position as Research Fellow. He has contributed as an expert to the awarded project

Olli Tuovinen has a M.Sc. degree from Helsinki University of Technology in Finland. He has had several production positions within the Finnish forest industry and has spent the last 30 years in Valmet, Tampella and Metso. Currently he is R&D manager at Valmet.

The award will be presented on September 27, 2016 at the International Mechanical Pulping Conference, IMPC. The event is hosted by TAPPI and will be held in Jacksonville, Florida, USA.

Arne Asplund Mechanical Pulping Award Foundation

The Arne Asplund Mechanical Pulping Award promotes the development of new technology for the manufacture of high-yield pulp. It is awarded to a person or persons in recognition of outstanding achievement in research and development of mechanical pulping technology.

The Arne Asplund Mechanical Pulping Award Foundation was established in 1985 to commemorate Dr. Asplund's contribution to the pulp and paper industry worldwide. The Award was made possible through a donation from Valmet to the foundation in 1985. The Chairman of the Foundation is Professor Göran Bengtsson.

VALMET
Corporate Communications

For further information, please contact:
Thomas Granfeldt, Senior Project Manager, Pulp and Energy Business Line, Valmet and Professor, Mid Sweden University, tel. +46 70 630 33 93.

Valmet is the leading global developer and supplier of process technologies, automation and services for the pulp, paper and energy industries. We aim to become the global champion in serving our customers.

Valmet's strong technology offering includes pulp mills, tissue, board and paper production lines, as well as power plants for bioenergy production. Our advanced services and automation solutions improve the reliability and performance of our customers' processes and enhance the effective utilization of raw materials and energy.

Valmet's net sales in 2015 were approximately EUR 2.9 billion. Our 12,000 professionals around the world work close to our customers and are committed to moving our customers' performance forward - every day. Valmet's head office is in Espoo, Finland and its shares are listed on the Nasdaq Helsinki.