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Hybrid Cu2O–Ag is attractive because of its many applications in the fields of photocatalysis, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), and optical features. In this article, we have presented a newer application of Cu2O–Ag. Cu2O–Ag has been found to exhibit excellent anionic dye adsorption properties together with organic transformation for effective water remediation. Cu2O–Ag was prepared through a facile but controlled galvanic reaction between cuprous oxide (Cu2O) and silver nitrate (AgNO3), rendering stability and porosity. The experimental results of adsorption showed that Cu2O–Ag bears an exceptionally high adsorption capacity toward methyl orange (501.23 mg g–1), which is higher than most reported results. The adsorption of MO on Cu2O–Ag happens because of the definite chemical interaction between Cu(I) and the SO3– functionality of MO. A kinetic study revealed that the MO adsorption on Cu2O–Ag primarily followed the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The kinetic model followed the Langmuir adsor...

In this paper, we report the design, synthesis, and characterization of three different composite nanomaterials (Cu-ZnO, Cu-Cu2O-ZnO, and Cu2O-ZnO) with surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect and n–p heterojunction for visible light photocatalysis. We have accounted for the first time the SPR effect of Cu in photocatalysis for promotion of efficient electron–hole separation that further enhances visible light induced photocatalytic activity. To make the composite efficient we have judiciously introduced cheap and common Cu and Cu2O in ZnO matrix individually and cojointly to make the composites visible light sensitizer. Furthermore, wide band gap barrier of ZnO crosses its UV limit in the composites and spreads over to visible region. By simply varying the complexing agents, here we achieve success to obtain three kinds of highly stable composite nanomaterials with three distinct structures from identical experimental condition. This synthetic strategy offers a radically different approach where oxidation...