Different surface coverage of nanosized Au on the TiO2 matrix was simply fabricated in an ultrasound-driven cell by adjusting the loading volume of gold precursor. Non-annealed Au-TiO2 composites with low surface coverage of nanosized Au exhibited a significantly enhanced photocatalytic activity in comparison to pristine TiO2. However, a further increase of nanosized Au loading consequently led to a decrease of photocatalytic efficiency of Au-deposited TiO2, probably due to the reduction of available surface area for organic pollutant adsorption and light absorption. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis of Au-deposited TiO2 indicated the coexistence of metallic Au-0 and non-metallic Au species that might play a role as an electron scavenger. The reduction of photoluminescence (PL) intensity also indicated the efficient separation of electrons and holes even in Au-TiO2 composites without heat treatment. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.