In this thesis, CoFe2O4@CeO2 magnetic nanocomposite was successfully synthesized through a simple green-assisted method using Arabic gum as a natural stabilizing and capping agent. The prepared nanocomposite was characterized by XRD, FESEM, TEM, EDX, elemental mapping, UV–Vis DRS, BET, and VSM analyses. The XRD pattern confirmed the coexistence of crystalline CoFe2O4 and CeO2 phases and revealed the formation of the CoFe2O4@CeO2 nanocomposite. FESEM and TEM analyses showed that the synthesized particles had a regular spherical morphology with nanoscale dimensions, and the particle size was mainly observed around 25-30 nm. EDX and elemental mapping analyses revealed the existence and homogeneous distribution of Co, Fe, Ce, and O elements in the CoFe2O4@CeO2 nanocomposite. UV-Vis DRS analysis showed that the synthesized nanocomposite, with a band gap energy of about 2.38 eV, has a suitable ability to absorb visible light. BET analysis confirmed that CoFe2O4@CeO2 magnetic nanocomposite has a surface area of 38.51 m2 g⁻1, which can provide more accessible active sites for tetracycline molecules and help to improve the interaction between the pollutant and the photocatalyst surface. VSM analysis also demonstrated the magnetic behavior of the sample with an Ms value of 9.61 emu g⁻¹, which can allow easy magnetic separation after the photocatalytic process. Photocatalytic results indicated that the CoFe2O4@CeO2 magnetic nanocomposite was able to achieve 95% tetracycline degradation within 60 min under visible-light irradiation. Reusability of the nanocomposite was performed over four consecutive cycles and only slight decrease in degradation efficiency was observed which confirmed the stability, magnetic recoverability, and practical potential of nanocomposite as an efficient visible-light-driven photocatalyst for tetracycline degradation.
