The removal of nonpolar gaseous ethylene molecules on the plasmonic photocatalyst Ag/AgCl/TiO2 was examined under simulated sunlight irradiation, to find that it has a markedly high activity for the oxidation of ethylene molecules. Systematic experiments, carried out to probe the cause for this observation, indicate that the strong electric field mainly on the Ag nanoparticles (NPs) generated by their surface plasmon resonance (SPR) induces polarization in gaseous ethylene molecules hence enhancing their adsorption on the catalysts and their subsequent photodegradation, and that TiO2 acts as a substrate for dispersing Ag/AgCI nanoparticles to have a larger active surface area. This study provides new ideas towards designing advanced photocatalysts for the degradation of nonpolar gaseous molecules. (C) 2017 Published by Elsevier B.V.