Exploring the impact of Ag doping on improving the photocatalytic performance of SnO2 nanoparticles for dye degradation

E. Jegalakshmi, M. Rameshbabu, P. Sagayaraj, K. Prabha (), S. Muthupandi, Manikandan Ayyar (), Saravanan Rajendran and M. Santhamoorthy
Additional contact information
E. Jegalakshmi: Mother Teresa Women’s University, Department of Physics
M. Rameshbabu: Arulmigu Palaniandavar College of Arts and Culture, Department of Physics
P. Sagayaraj: Meenakshi Academy of Higher Education and Research (Deemed to be University), Faculty of Humanities and Sciences
K. Prabha: Mother Teresa Women’s University, Department of Physics
S. Muthupandi: Saveetha School of Engineering, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences (SIMTS), Center for Global Health Research, Saveetha Medical College and Hospitals
Manikandan Ayyar: Karpagam Academy of Higher Education, Department of Chemistry
Saravanan Rajendran: Instituto de Alta Investigación, Universidad de Tarapacá
M. Santhamoorthy: Yeungnam University, School of Chemical Engineering

The European Physical Journal B: Condensed Matter and Complex Systems, 2025, vol. 98, issue 12, 1-12

Abstract: Abstract Silver-modified tin oxide (SnO2) nanomaterials with different amounts of additive (1, 3, and 5%) were prepared through a simple co-precipitation method to enhance their efficiency in photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue under UV–visible light irradiation. Structural characterization by X-ray diffraction confirmed the formation of a tetragonal rutile phase of SnO2 and in addition distinct reflections corresponding to face-centered cubic (FCC) phase of silver were observed upon doping, indicating the development of a dual-phase system comprising SnO2 and metallic Ag with crystallite sizes ranging from 12 to 24 nm. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy confirmed the functional group of the synthesized samples by revealing metal–oxygen bonding and surface hydroxyl groups. UV–Vis spectroscopy revealed a blue shift in the absorption edge and an increase in band gap energy with Ag incorporation, suggesting quantum confinement and reduced defect states. Scanning electron microscopy revealed agglomerated flake-like morphologies, and EDX verified the even distribution of Sn, O, and Ag, supporting compositional purity. Thermal analysis (TGA/DTA/DSC) showed melting point reduction upon increased dopant concentration, supporting the increased thermal stability. Photocatalytic activity under visible light irradiation indicated that the highest degradation efficiency (81.53%) against methylene blue was achieved by 1% Ag-doped SnO2 due to enhanced charge carrier separation and localized surface plasmon resonance effects at low Ag concentration. These findings illustrate that fine-tuning Ag content is essential in achieving maximum photocatalytic efficiency in environmental remediation technologies. Graphical abstract

Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://link.springer.com/10.1140/epjb/s10051-025-01099-7 Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:eurphb:v:98:y:2025:i:12:d:10.1140_epjb_s10051-025-01099-7

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.springer.com/economics/journal/10051

DOI: 10.1140/epjb/s10051-025-01099-7

Access Statistics for this article

The European Physical Journal B: Condensed Matter and Complex Systems is currently edited by P. Hänggi and Angel Rubio

More articles in The European Physical Journal B: Condensed Matter and Complex Systems from Springer, EDP Sciences
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().