Liza White

ORONO, Maine — Changes in global demand have brought both economic uncertainty and opportunity to Maine’s pulp and paper industry. Now as a University of Maine Ph.D. student in biomedical engineering, Liza White is investigating new uses for these companies’ products, which may open new markets and support places like her hometown. In collaboration with UMaine biomedical engineering associate professor Caitlin Howell, White leads multiple studies into possible biomedical applications for products manufactured by Sappi North America, which own and operate the Somerset Mill in Skowhegan and the Westbrook Mill. …White’s primary research with Sappi involves determining whether the film that it manufactures for imprinting texture patterns onto textiles can be used for water quality testing. …If successful, this process could reduce the cost and time for water testing by allowing municipalities, government agencies and other organizations to perform it in-house, instead of sending samples to a lab.