Google is investing $168 million in an alternative power project that aims to produce enough solar energy to light 140,000 homes. The commitment announced Monday is part of the financing that BrightSource Energy needs to build a solar power plant in California’s Mojave Desert. BrightSource also has lined up $1.6 billion in loans guaranteed by…

Hydroelectric power is the oldest and the “greenest” source of renewable energy. In Germany, the potential would appear to be completely exploited, while large-scale projects in developing countries are eliciting strong criticism due to their major impact on the environment. Researchers at Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TUM) have developed a small-scale hydroelectric power plant that solves…

If a new development from labs at MIT pans out as expected, someday the entire surface area of a building’s windows could be used to generate electricity — without interfering with the ability to see through them. The key technology is a photovoltaic cell based on organic molecules, which harnesses the energy of infrared light…