Sono- and mechanochemical doping of tin dioxide with silver and its physicochemical characteristics and photocatalytic properties.

Mechano- and sonochemical treatments were proposed as facile procedures for doping of precipitated SnO2 with silver. All obtained samples have been studied using XRD, SEM and EDS, XPS, adsorption–desorption of nitrogen, UV–Vis spectroscopy and potentiometric titration. XRD and SEM–EDS data showed that silver was uniformly distributed at surface of SnO2. The doped samples have a developed meso–macroporous structure. Narrowing the band gap and increasing in absorption of visible light result in high photocatalytic activity of doped SnO2 in the degradation of dyes and 4-clorophenol under visible irradiation. Relationship between physicochemical and photocatalytic properties of prepared samples has been discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]