Published on Nov. 19, 2018	In the Columbia Missourian
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Hirotsugu “Koge” Yasuda was an influential, accomplished and humble scientist.

He published three books and more than 320 peer-reviewed articles, which were cited thousands of times, but rarely spoke about his work with the family he loved.

Dr. Yasuda, 88, died Oct. 29 at his home in Columbia with his family by his side.

Born in 1930, Dr. Yasuda grew up in Kyoto, Japan. His father ran a textile factory and died when Dr. Yasuda was 13. He and his brother, Takeshi, had to work to support their mother and sister.

Early in his education, Dr. Yasuda’s wife, Gerda Yasuda, said, teachers didn’t take him seriously.

“They thought he was dumb,” she said. “He didn’t do anything. He didn’t study.”

In his early years, Dr. Yasuda felt overshadowed by his brother, an accomplished student. As time went on, however, he became more responsible in his studies.

While Dr. Yasuda aspired to be a medical doctor, he couldn’t afford to study medicine. He followed his brother’s academic route instead, using his old textbooks and entering the field of chemical engineering. Eventually, Dr. Yasuda passed the entrance exam to the highly competitive Kyoto University and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in polymer science and engineering in 1952.

He came to the U.S. on a freighter with the cheapest tickets he could find, Gerda Yasuda said. He attended the State University of New York in Syracuse, attaining a master’s degree in polymer chemistry in 1959 and a doctorate in physical and polymer chemistry in 1961.

After graduating, Dr. Yasuda worked at the Research Triangle Institute in North Carolina, developing processes to convert seawater into drinkable water through reverse osmosis. From there, he worked at Harvard and then in Los Angeles.

In 1966, Dr. Yasuda was asked to help found a new laboratory at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. He wanted to bring his new Rambler, so he decided to travel by boat.

During the 10-day ocean crossing, he met his future wife, Gerda.

With little to do on the last day of the journey, the passengers decided to play tag. It was the first time he’d met Gerda, and she jokingly tagged him “it.” Without her knowledge, her friend slipped Dr. Yasuda her address. They started to write letters to each other. With time, they met at her sister’s house. They married in the U.S. in 1968 and remained together until his death.

MU hired Dr. Yasuda as chairman of its chemical engineering department in 1988. He grew bored of meetings and paperwork quickly and doubled down on his research.

“He wasn’t the kind of professor that got tenure and didn’t do anything; he was the opposite,” said his son, Akira Yasuda.

Academic articles “just floated out of him,” Gerda Yasuda said.

Dr. Yasuda was an expert in plasma polymerization and how it could be used. He helped Saturn adhere paint to its cars’ bumpers, developed processes to prevent seawater corrosion for the military, and created a coating that allowed contact lenses to be worn day and night for up to a month.

In his time as a university professor, Dr. Yasuda formed deep bonds with his students. They appreciated his teaching style, Gerda Yasuda said, and he challenged them to solve problems independently.

Often, students would catch trout with Dr. Yasuda at the family waterfront property in Rolla, Akira Yasuda said. On holidays in Columbia, students from nations across the globe would join the family to celebrate. Student reunions occurred regularly at the Yasuda family house.

After he retired in 2003, Dr. Yasuda became a professor emeritus and remained active in academia and the professional world. Along with Akira, he co-founded a company, Bio Interface Engineering, in 2011. The Columbia-based company produces artificial skin for burn victims.

Dr. Yasuda prioritized spending time with his family. When their kids had days off school, Gerda Yasuda said, he would take them on hiking trips.

“He kind of planted the seed for winter sports for me, the passion,” Akira Yasuda said. “I started skiing when I was 4, and it’s still one of my big passions in life. He liked skiing and snowboarding.”

Dr. Yasuda was also an avid tennis player and stayed on the court until his mid-70s.

Like his knowledge of the sciences, Dr. Yasuda’s faith in God was deep. He worshipped at First Baptist Church and served as a deacon.

Gerda Yasuda recalled one conversation she had with her husband about one of his books.

“He said, ‘Did I write that? That’s not possible; how could I write that? It came from above to me,’” she said. “That was amazing — God gave it to him.”

A Celebration of Life service and reception will be held at 3 p.m. Dec. 7 at First Baptist Church, 1112 E. Broadway.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to either First Baptist Church of Columbia or to Bio Interface Engineering LLC, Missouri Innovation Center, 1601 S. Providence Road, Lab 118, Columbia, MO 65211.