One-dimension (1D) Co3O4/ZnO core/shell nanorods (NRs) were synthesized on nickel foil substrate by means of a two-step synthetic strategy. Co3O4 NRs were initially fabricated by a facile hydrothermal reaction and then ZnO was coated via a simple thermal decomposition. The results verified that the surface of the p-type Co3O4 core was uniformly assembled by the n-type ZnO nanoparticles with approximate 20 nm thickness. Compared with pristine Co3O4 NRs, Co3O4/ZnO core/shell NRs was exhibited to have a much higher photocatalytic properties in the decomposition of a model dye compound, methylene blue (MB), under ultraviolet irradiation. As confirmed by Photoluminescence (PL) spectra, the formation of p-n junction heterostructures gives rise to the enhanced photocatalystic performance of Co3O4/ZnO core/shell NRs. This study provides a general and effective method in the fabrication of 1D composition NRs with sound heterojunctions that show remarkable enhancement of photocatalytic performance. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.