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In this work, photocatalytic performance is divulged in the ternary CuO-Ag-ZnO nanowire synthesized via a two-step approach. The decoration of Ag and CuO nanostructures onto the surface of ZnO nanowires was simply carried out by using the plasma electrolytic oxidation method in a short time. The structure, size, morphology, and optical properties of as-prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, and spectrophotometry measurements. The diameters of Ag nanoparticles and ZnO nanoflowers are in the range of 5–20 nm and 20–60 nm, respectively. Within the first 15 min, methyl orange was decolorized 96.3 and 82.8% in the CuO-Ag-ZnO and Ag-ZnO, respectively, and there is only about 46.7% of that decomposed in pure ZnO. The CuO-Ag-ZnO shows a higher rate constant k = 0.2007 min−1 and a lower half-life time t = 6.1 min compared to Ag-ZnO and bare ZnO nanowires. The photo-reusability of the ternary nanostructures was estimated to be much outweighed compared to ZnO nanowires. Interestingly, the synergic incorporation between noble metal–semiconductor or semiconductor–semiconductor in the interfaces of Ag-CuO, Ag-ZnO, and CuO-ZnO expands the visible light absorption range and eliminates the photogenerated electron–hole recombination, resulting in a superior visible-light-driven photocatalyst.

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The structural, optical, and photocatalytic properties of TiO2 and Ag–TiO2 thin films grown by a hydrothermal method were studied by using an x-ray diffractometer, scanning electron microscope, energy-dispersive x ray, and UV–vis spectroscopy. The results indicated that all films were of single-phase and the Ag presence enhanced catalytic and water-splitting performances in the visible light region. In particular, the methylene blue solution was disintegrated up to 99% after 12 and 8 h for TiO2 and Ag–TiO2 films, respectively. Meanwhile, the splitting efficiency increased from 0.3% for TiO2 to 1% for Ag–TiO2. These performances demonstrate the great potential of Ag–TiO2 films in photocatalytic and water-splitting applications.