Mehdi Tajvidi, a professor of renewable nanomaterials at the University of Maine, has been named the 2026 recipient of the FiberLean Distinguished Scientist Award from the Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry (TAPPI) Advanced Renewable Materials division.
The award recognizes individuals whose work has significantly advanced scientific and engineering knowledge within the renewable materials sector. Division Technical Awards, presented by TAPPI, honor outstanding accomplishments or contributions that advance industry technology in a given field.
Tajvidi received the award on April 28 at the TAPPICon conference in Columbus, Ohio.
He holds appointments in 91¸£Àû’s School of Forest Resources, the Advanced Structures and Composites Center and the Forest Bioproducts Research Institute. His research focuses on alternatives to petroleum-based products, particularly within forest-based industries.
