In the current situation, the main problem of the cities and highly populated centers of the world is the pollution of water resources. Emerging pollutants enter water sources with persistent effect which may pose significant risks to the organisms and the natural world. In the present work, Bi 5 O 7 I-Ce nanoparticles were synthesized, and their application for the degradation of the doxorubicin (DOX; an anticancer drug) was investigated. The physicochemical properties of the synthesized samples were comprehensively investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and UV–visible (UV–Vis) spectroscopy, which collectively confirmed the successful fabrication of Bi₅O₇I-Ce nanoparticles. The photodegradation studies revealed that the prepared nanocomposite under optimized conditions (concentration: 20.0 μg/mL, amount of photocatalyst: 0.004 g, time: 90 min and pH equal to 8.0) a maximum degradation efficiency of 97.56% was achieved. In addition, the ability to reuse the nanocomposite was examined, the results indicated that the Bi 5 O 7 I-Ce photocatalyst is reusable for up to 11 cycles without any significant decreases in performance, confirming the stability of the synthesized nanocomposite. Overall, the results indicate the novel application of Bi₅O₇I-Ce nanoparticles for pharmaceutical wastewater treatment and confirm their excellent catalytic performance, stability and cost-effectiveness for water purification. • Bi₅O₈I-Ce nanoparticles effectively degrade doxorubicin in wastewater. • Achieved 97.56% degradation under optimized photocatalytic conditions. • Nanocomposite demonstrates reusability for up to 11 cycles without performance loss. • Synthesized nanoparticles show promising potential for water treatment applications. • Study addresses critical environmental challenges posed by pharmaceutical waste.
Daneshi et al. (2026) studied this question.