Synthesis and characterization of a magnetic Fe3O4@CeO2 nanocomposite decorated with Ag nanoparticle and investigation of synergistic effects of Ag on photocatalytic activity

In this research, for the first time the synergistic effect of Ag nanoparticle to enhance the photocatalytic activity of nanocatalyst Fe3O4@CeO2 (CF) was demonstrated. To synthesis Fe3O4@CeO2/Ag (CFA) after preparation of magnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticle, cerium dioxide was supported on the prepared Fe3O4. To improve the photocatalytic activity of nanocomposite (CF), it was decorated by an optimized concentration of Ag (NO3) with the reduction of Ag+ cations by NaBH4 solution. FT-IR, EDX, SEM, and XRD analysis were used to characterization of the structure and morphology of the synthesized compounds. The photocatalytic activity of prepared nanocomposite was investigated by photodegradation of methylene blue (MB) in aqueous solution under UV light irradiation. The results were shown that the synergistic effect of Ag particle has increased the photocatalytic activity of the CFA about 2 times higher than the CF nanocomposite. The mechanism investigation determined that the radicals O2− and OH are the main species in the photocatalysis process by CFA.