Laying the Foundation

March 20, 2010

It was easy enough to decide where we plan to place the biogas digester, but it is a quite a different story making a solid foundation in the clay filled hill that we had selected. Brigitte and I decided to locate the biogas digester just outside the kitchen for easy access and use. The land surrounding the building slopes quickly downwards so the first order of business was to create a level and solid foundation for the 1130 gallon tank and all the degrading food that it will hold.

After debating a multitude of options for supporting the big lug, it was decided to dig a hole in the hill to level the ground, set the foundation in cement, and build a cylindrical wall to set the digester on top. Sounds basic enough, right? Well, let me tell you about the Amazonian soil: it is much less dirt and more like clay. Digging four feet into is trouble since it sticks to the shovel, so it is work to get it out of the soil and work to get it off the shovel...and don't get me started about the heat that we did all this digging in! Once that grueling work was done, we lay our sand to level the ground, drove some rebar into the ground to fortify the wall, set the first layer of bricks for the wall, and poured the cement for the floor. Foundation complete! Now let dry and onto building the wall!

Piping

March 13, 2010

Since the tank was made for storing potable water rather than for use as a biogas digester, the tank needed to be fit for its piping before it could even be taken outside to be set in place. The lid needed two holes drilled into it and the tank itself had two extra holes already in place that needed to be filled.

The two extra holes that needed filling proposed a bit of an initial problem since we had not anticipated pre manufactured holes in our tank. The problem was soon resolved with the rubber seals that came with the tank along with a few extra supplies we had on hand such as polymer glue and two-inch lids, we were able to devise a way to seal the holes.

The two holes in the lid are for the effluent for the decomposed material to come out. The first is a small hole for a one inch pipe to glide smoothly through without having discharge around the seal. This pipe will be releasing enriched liquid from the top of the tank to prevent it from getting too full. In order to make this happen, an ''L'' shaped pipe was constructed for the extra liquid at the top of the tank to flow through. Then a a hole was drilled in the lid and lined with natural rubber tubing and the long pipe was pushed through the hole. There was some guess work here to make the hole big enough for the pipe to slide freely, but not too big that the seal is no longer effective.

After doing this first hole, the second hole was a bit easier since we only had to get a two inch pipe to fit snugly with a rubber seal. The problem camewhen we went to attatch the valve that will release the decomposed food sludge. The ball valve we had purchased would not budge! So really, we now have a heavy pipe with a handle on it. We will need to go back to Iquitos to find a better valve.

Ode to Proyecto Amazonas

March 6th, 2010

Since the foundation of Future Scientist last year, Project Amazonas has been has been a helping hand and support every step of the way. From the early '90s and onward, this non-profit organization has been making a profound impact on many of the habitants in the Peru. They coordinate and run medical expeditions to rural communities, provide employment to locals, and give access to researchers. Future Scientist is now among the ranks or organizations and people it has helped, so we would like to take a moment to say thank you!

For our first project, when we installed solar panels and gave science based lessons at the orphanage, Project Amazonas provided the contacts to do this work. Now for this biogas digester project, this organization has provided us the means in which to do a wide range needs assessment of the area as well as a place to stay while doing our design work on the biogas digester. Thank you Project Amazonas!

Hopefully they will be able to make good use out of the digester we leave for them and perhaps Future Scientist can continue to work closely with them to continue to give back.

En la selva, en la noche

Four hours on the cheripita, a small uncovered metal boat, and one painful sunburn later, Frances and I were climbing the steep concrete block path up to Madre Selva, our home for the next two months. We drop our bags in the screened in enclosure we chose for sleeping, and make our way down to the kitchen to help unpack the food.

That done, we head back to begin the process of scattering our belongings.

Our sleeping house is basically a large screened in building with a bunch of wood frame beds lined up neatly inside. Frances chooses a bed on the far side of the room and I pick another one right next door. Mattress, sheets, pillows, a bug net for the bed, and it is starting to look pretty homey. Stretch sigh, and collapse.

A knock on the screen door followed by a soft "Hola?" interupts our lazing.

Frances and I bestir ourselves to find Julio, the caretaker of the research station, peering in from outside. We smile and invite him in and he looks at our set up and then at us. In a voice I can barely hear, he asks us if want something. A few stumbling exchanges later we find ourselves helping him set up a tent inside the building, into which we move our beds.

Now, this may seem a bit much, you know...a screened-in tent set up inside of a screened-in building. Well let me clear that up for you right now. IT IS NOT!


Night number one:

I lie on my back, prostrate in the heat. It is pitch black, like being in a cave, but despite this fact, my eyes are open and staring, roving aimlessly in the nothingness, as I try to track the various sounds. All around me, the nocturnal world is coming to life. Crickets are chirping, frogs are peeping, croaking and barking, and birds are hooting and trilling. This is not the cause of my roving eyeballs. Proximal noises, shuffling and scooting sounds coming from too close for comfort places.

And then... patter patter patter: the sound of fast moving feet. Above me...or below me? It sounds like it is on the surface of the tent. I bat at wall, making the whole tent sway and shudder. "What was that?" asks Frances, and a light comes on, blinding in the absolute darkness. I squint, listening still, "I thought I heard something on the side of the tent..." We both scoot forward on our bunks to tug at the zippered entrance, making sure it is closed all the way so that nothing can sneak in while we are asleep. A small measure of comfort in this strange environment. We lie back and eventually drift to sleep, the sounds of the jungle blending into the background.

Buenas noches en la selva.