On Thursday, Sept. 18, two former Oregon State University students will retrieve a wave energy device from the Pacific Ocean seafloor off the North Oregon Coast to see how much electricity their APEX model generated in a two-week test deployment. Unlike other proposed wave energy devices, M3 Wave’s is not a buoy that is tethered to the ocean floor and bobs in waves on the surface to generate electricity. Instead, it is anchored on the seafloor and generates electricity by inflating and deflating bags that is shot through a six-inch diameter pipe, spinning a turbine inside which creates electricity. Company CEO Mike Morrow and co-founder Mike Delos-Reyes attended OSU in the early 1990s. They built their first model out of milk bags and spoons from Dairy Queen. On Sept. 4th, the two, along with a crew, deployed the APEX off of Camp Rilea, near Warrenton in 50-feet of water. The APEX is rectangular-shaped, 30-feet long and 8-feet wide. The model is about one-fifth the size of a regular unit and weighs approximately 5,000 lbs. During initial tests, Morrow reported air was moving at 100 mph through the tubes, which was greater than they had expected. M3 Wave plans to unveil the APEX on land Sept. 24 & 25 at the ninth annual Ocean Renewable Energy Conference in Portland.
