Engineering Faculty Spotlight: Dr. Daniel Yeh, 2024 Florida Inventor’s Hall of Fame Inductee, Recognized at Annual Induction Ceremony & Gala
The Florida Inventors Hall of Fame held its 2024 Annual Induction Ceremony & Gala on October 25 at the Tampa Marriott Water Street, recognizing nine distinguished innovators from across the state. Among this year’s nine inductees were two faculty members from the University of South Florida (USF): Dr. Daniel Yeh, professor in the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, and Sylvia Wilson Thomas, PhD, USF Research & Innovation.
Read more about our inductees here. See the full list of 2024 inductees here.
About The Florida Inventors Hall of Fame: Honorees are selected annually through a nomination process open to all inventors in the state of Florida. The nominations are reviewed by a Selection Committee comprising distinguished experts in the relevant fields of innovation. Nominees elected to the Hall of Fame are inducted at an annual ceremony, where their achievements are honored and their influence on society acknowledged and celebrated.
Learn more about other USF Inductees to the Florida Inventor’s Hall of Fame here.
2024 Florida Inventors Hall of Fame Inductee Spotlight: Daniel Yeh
Daniel Yeh, Ph.D., PE, BCEE, LEED AP is a Professor of Environmental Engineering at the University of South Florida, where he has been a faculty member since 2005. He leads the Membrane Biotechnology Laboratory at USF, which focused on the research and development of innovative wastewater treatment and resource recovery technologies. Learn more about Daniel Yeh's awards and work here.
“What a tremendous honor and privilege to be included among inventors that I have admired over the past decade,” Yeh shared in a recent LinkedIn post. “This recognition is a tribute to the dedication, perseverance, and creativity of the amazing groups of students, postdocs, and partners I’ve worked with over the past 20 years at USF," said Daniel Yeh.
The USF College of Engineering congratulates Dr. Yeh’s continued efforts not only for USF, but for the community and the world at large. The NEWgenerator is a prime example of Yeh’s dedication to addressing critical global issues. The compact, off-grid system has been deployed in areas with limited sanitation infrastructure, including communities in South Africa.
Through a licensing agreement with WEC Projects, the technology is now being manufactured for widespread use in South Africa and other regions in need. The device is helping communities become more self-sufficient by providing access to clean water and renewable energy without the need for costly sewer systems.
Yeh credits his longtime collaborator and business partner, Dr. Robert Bair, with playing an instrumental role in the development of the NEWgenerator. “Robert and I co-invented the NEWgenerator and several other technologies in our lab,” Yeh said. “He moved to India for a year to ensure the success of our first international field trial.”
Yeh’s induction into the Florida Inventors Hall of Fame not only highlights his contributions to environmental engineering but also brings attention to the crucial issue of sustainable sanitation. His work continues to inspire a new generation of engineers and researchers at USF and beyond.
Behind the USF Invented NEWgenerator
In 2020, The USF Technology Transfer Office signed a licensing agreement with WEC Projects of South Africa in regarding the USF-invented NEWgenerator (or NEWgen). It sent a unit to South Africa to begin the process of entering mass production. The solar-powered machine generates nutrients, energy and water by safely recovering them from human wastewater – a technology built to address global sanitation concerns.
Civil and Environmental Engineering Professor Daniel Yeh and his team shipped a version of the NEWgenerator to Soweto, a South African township that receives its water and sanitation services from the city of Johannesburg. The off-grid sanitation technology allows the community to become more self-sufficient without having to rely on a power grid or install a costly sewer system.
“Ensuring access to clean water and sanitation is one of the world’s most pressing challenges,” Yeh said. “I hope this induction helps draw further awareness to the needs of billions, including millions in the U.S., who still suffer from inadequate infrastructure for water and sanitation.”
Yeh’s achievements have garnered support from numerous organizations, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Cade Museum for Creativity & Invention. The NEWgenerator has also received recognition for its role in tackling the global sanitation crisis. It was specifically designed to address the lack of adequate water and sanitation infrastructure affecting billions of people worldwide, a cause that remains central to Yeh’s mission. Read more about the beginning stages of NEWgen here.
What’s Next for Dr. Yeh and the NEWgenerator?
Four years later, Dr. Yeh and his team are positioning the NEWgenerator to tackle water and wastewater infrastructure challenges in the United States. About 25% of households in the U.S. (or 31 million households), are not connected to sewers, and must resort to some sort of onsite system. Many of these systems fail, resulting in contamination of the environment and a threat to public health. The situation is especially problematic in many underserved communities in Alabama, Alaska, Appalachia, the Navajo Nation, and US island territories. Through a project funded by the National Science Foundation’s Convergence Accelerator program, the USF team is looking to deploy the NEWgenerator in Hawaii to help address wastewater challenges in Pacific Islands.
Florida Hall of Fame
As the Florida Inventors Hall of Fame continues to highlight inventors like Dr. Yeh, it inspires a future where innovation meets impact. Learn more about the Hall of Fame’s inductees and how you can support the mission of fostering Florida’s innovation ecosystem by visiting Florida Inventors Hall of Fame
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