Keh Cheng “Ken” Tsao, a former professor of mechanical engineering in the college, passed on October 14 at age 103.
Visitation will be held Saturday, October 24, at 10 a.m., followed by a memorial service at 11 a.m. at Schmidt and Bartelt in Mequon.
Tsao joined the UWM faculty in the college in 1967, before the EMS building opened, and retired in 1995.
In 1972, he pioneered the first 24/7 air quality monitoring station in the U.S. through a Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources grant. He also established graduate research programs in engine combustion, emissions, alternative fuels and power plant pollution control.
His work included partnerships with WEPCO, now We Energies, that resulted in conversion to compressed natural gas as a fuel source, offsetting coal.
He published more than 50 papers and received two patents.
Born in China, Tsao immigrated to the U.S. in 1954 and attended the Illinois Institute of Technology and UW-Madison. He began his academic career at the South Dakota School of Mines in 1960 before moving to UWM.
Tsao and his wife, Maryanne, were dedicated educators and community leaders. Together, they established a Chinese language school in Milwaukee and the first Organization of Chinese Americans scholarships for graduating high school seniors.