Degussa Active Oxygens’ Experts Honored By Canadian Industry Organization 

Innovative Research Paper Receives Prestigious Howard Rapson Memorial Award  

PARSIPPANY, N. J., May 7, 2007 – A scientific paper by two experts from Degussa Corporation has received the Howard Rapson Memorial Award from the Pulp and Paper Technical Association of Canada (PAPTAC).  

"ECF Bleaching of Softwood Kraft Pulp - Understanding the Potential of Extraction" by Hans U. Suess, Director, Global Competence Center Active Oxygens, Hanau, Germany and Dan Davies, Applications Manager, Active Oxygens, Degussa Canada Inc., was honored as “the best paper, in content and presentation, presented in Canada” during the PAPTAC meeting in Montreal.   

The Association said the award is intended to foster the presentation of high quality papers for advancement of the field of chemical pulp bleaching. It was created by the Bleaching Committee of PAPTAC in 1999 to recognize the contributions of Dr. Rapson, who had committed his working life to the science and technology of chemical pulp bleaching.   

Suess and Davies not only received acknowledgement at the conference but also a certificate and a gold pin.  

Carlos Gil Mast, vice president and general manager of Active Oxygens for the Americas, said Degussa was pleased that Suess and Davies received international recognition for their efforts.  

“It is extremely gratifying when our expertise is commended by a prestigious organization such as PAPTAC,” said Gil Mast.  “We are very proud of the ground breaking research performed by Hans Suess and Dan Davies.”   

PAPTAC is an independent, nonprofit membership organization of technically oriented individuals whose main objectives are to improve their own technical and scientific competence and to raise the technology of the Canadian pulp and paper industry. The 4,000-member Association carries out its mission by providing forums where members may identify present and future technical issues of importance to the industry.  

Degussa: Creating Essentials™
Degussa -- a wholly owned subsidiary of the RAG Group -- is the global market leader in specialty chemicals. Our business is creating essentials: innovative products and system solutions that make indispensable contributions to our customers’ success. In fiscal 2005, our 44,000 employees worldwide generated sales of $13.9 billion and operating profits (EBIT) of $1.1 billion.