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A
Biographical Sketch of Kazuhiko Asia
Dr. Kazuhiko Asai was born on the 30th of March,
1908 as the eldest son of Masajiro Asai who was working at that time
as an educator of Chinese pupils in Dairen, Manchuria, the
northeastern province of China. He stayed there until he was 10
years old; after that the family moved to Tokyo, where he graduated
from the Imperial University of Tokyo, Faculty Jurisprudence, in 1932.
In the spring of 1934 he was sent to Berlin as the representative of
Okura trading Co., Ltd. He matriculated at the polytechnium in
Charlottenburg, Berlin, in 1940, where he studied mining and
metallurgy, for four yeas. He stayed in Berlin till its fall to
the Russian army in 1945.
He returned to Japan in July 1945 and established the Coal Research
Institute, where he studied with several assistants the nature of coal
in Japan. The institute has been instrumental in introducing
steel beams and columns to replace wooden beams and columns in coal
mines in this country. His research at the institute led to the
discovery of germanium in coal and the extraction of germanium from
coal gas waste liquid.
In 1953 he represented Japan at the International Congress on
the Study of Coal Structure. The same year he was appointed to
teach the subject of coal petrology at the Second Engineering
Department at Tokyo University and at the Science Faculty of Kyushu
University.
In 1957, he was awarded the Purple Order of Merit for his various
achievements in the field of technical development.
In 1962 a doctorate for technology by the University of Kyoto was
conferred on him.
In 1967 he received an award by the fuel Association.
In 1969 the Asai Germanium Research Institute was established.
In January 1975 he was elected a member of the New York Academy of
Science.
At present he continues his research and directs the Organic Germanium
Clinic
Dr. Asai is married to Erika (nee Hoelterhof) and has a son and three
daughters.
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