Honorable Educators and Researchers,

I am a 75-year-old semi-retired engineer in the United States, and I am not seeking any financial compensation for this work. My goal is to place a practical, field-tested anaerobic digester design into the hands of African scientists and communities who may find it useful.

I have just received a commitment for collaboration from a group of academics in Ghana to assemble and study my family-scale anaerobic digester designed to meet the needs of their remote Savanah communities.
And because of their enthusiasm, I thought to reach out to more university educators and scientists in those affected  African countries.

Please kindly view the brief (5 minute) video included below. It provides a very complete explanation.
Here is a video describing the system targeted for introduction to remote communities.
African Savannahs Biodigester:
https://youtu.be/9Z67LmGr7YM?si=NnPbledrSdDjXmvG

It’s based on the more complex system (below) that operates in cold regions.
Solar Assisted Biodigester:
https://youtu.be/gXGi1_ExAFM?si=xtmmYmyIfuWwXTkq
Operating continuously for 3 years, it has been producing quality methane gas and high nutrient digestate fertilizer.
The Savanna model is literally the same as the solar assisted digester, without the solar heating setups and greenhouse.

My target area is remote African savannah communities where over-harvesting of trees for firewood has contributed to wind erosion and declining soil quality, limiting family-level food production. I want to stimulate a grassroots effort to establish small home- or village-scale anaerobic digesters in such regions.
Although earlier in my career I designed and built biodigesters as large as 800 cubic meters, for the past five years have been dedicated to reducing and simplifying the biodigester systems so they can function in economically and educationally disadvantaged communities. This Africa-purposed design emphasizes high performance relative to size and nearly no maintenance.

The core concept is straightforward:
• Replace wood fires with biogas produced from food waste and occasional manure
• Rebuild soil through digestate-infused compositing
• Support small-scale household food production and improved nutrition

I would like to provide complete drawings, operational explanations, and consultation to an African academic counterpart group or individual. My intention is to contribute the design elements and collaborate toward an African-run initiative. There are no restrictions on anyone’s use of the design.
Initially, I am simply seeking connection with science-oriented academics—particularly environmental scientists—who would be willing to review and evaluate whether this approach offers a viable alternative to wood fuel and whether digestate-infused compositing offers measurable soil restoration potential in savannah conditions.
If the concept warrants further discussion, I would be honored to collaborate personally or, if appropriate, to have you forward this to colleagues who may wish to examine it.

With respect,
Steven Bolgiano

Steven Bolgiano
The TerraDesic Project
443.235.1344
www.terradesic.com