We report herein a means of transforming TiO2 nanotube arrays (TNAs) from an amorphous state to an anatase crystal state (denoted as *TNAs), and present a single-step synthetic route for preparing CdS quantum dots (CdS QDs) as well as reduced graphene oxide (rGO) through gamma-ray irradiation. The as-prepared *TNAs, CdS QDs, and rGO, which had all been subjected to gamma-ray irradiation, were then assembled together to produce the desired heterojunction (denoted as CdS QDs/rGO-*TNAs). X-ray diffraction (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), ultraviolet/visible diffuse-reflectance spectroscopy (UV/Vis DRS), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), micro-Raman spectrometry (RS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) have been applied to characterize the appearance and performance of this photocatalyst. The photocatalytic activity of CdS QDs/rGO-*TNAs towards ethylene degradation has been measured by placing it in a simulated cold-storage environment, the temperature and humidity of which were set at about 3 +/- 1 degrees C and 75-90%, respectively. The results showed that the rate constant (K) of ethylene degradation could reach up to 1.07 x 10 (3) min (1) with CdS QDs/rGO-*TNAs, as compared to 2.30 x 10 (4) min (1) with *TNAs and 6. 25 x 10 (4) min (1) with CdS QDs-*TNAs, indicating that the constructed CdS QDs/rGO-*TNAs constitutes a promising photocatalyst for ethylene removal in a cold storage environment. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.