TAPPI Journal Awards Best Research Papers for 2025
Each year, the TAPPI Journal Editorial Board honors the best of TAPPI Journal content by nominating and voting for the Best Research Paper. The award is ultimately selected based on scientific merit, innovation, creativity, and clarity. For 2025, two papers claimed this distinct honor.
The first paper, “The influence of precoating layers on the performance of water-based barrier coatings,” was authored by Kritee Pokharel and co-authors Douglas W. Bousfield and Jinwu Wang. Pokharel is a graduate student and Bousfield is professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering at the University of Maine in Orono, ME. Wu is a scientist at the USDA Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, WI. The coatings research appeared in the January 2025 issue and is now available as a complimentary download.
The second paper, “Filtration performance of face masks and facepiece respirators used during COVID-19 pandemic,” was authored by Md Faizur Rahman and co-authored by Mirza Mohammad Omar Khyum, and Seshadri Ramkumar. Rahman and Khyum are graduate research assistants and Ramkumar is a professor in the Department of Environmental Toxicology at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, TX. The nonwovens research appeared in the February 2025 issue and is now available as a complimentary download.
“The paper on filtration performance from the Nonwovens and Advanced Materials Laboratory, Texas Tech University, shows how different nonwoven materials like spunmelt, wetlaid and carded all contribute towards achieving good barrier properties,” said Gaurav Pranami, Ph.D., VP, R&D, Imbed Biosciences, Inc. and TAPPI Journal Editorial Board Member. “Importantly, the nature of precursors and quality standards are critical in manufacturing these lifesaving products.”
In addition to receiving Best Research Paper honors as primary authors, Pokharel and Rahman will also share the Honghi Tran TAPPI Journal Best Research Paper award. The $3,000 cash prize is endowed by Professor Emeritus Honghi Tran, Ph.D., of the University of Toronto and author or co- author of more than 80 papers published in the Journal. Tran established the award in 2019 to encourage and reward the publication of high-quality research in TAPPI Journal.
The awards will be presented at TAPPICon®, April 26-29, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio, USA.