Photocatalytic oxidation reactions are regarded as promising green synthesis methods for the photodegradation of volatile organic compounds such as trichloroethylene. However, low photocatalytic efficiency and selectivity limit practical application of the technique. We report the synthesis of novel hexagonal BiPO4/Au-Pd nanorods with diameters of 500 nm that display excellent performance in degrading trichloroethylene under visible-light irradiation. With co-catalytic Au-Pd bimetallic alloy nanoparticles deposited on the nanorod surfaces, the photocatalytic activity is enhanced approximately 25 times compared to that of the BiPO4 nanorods. The dramatic enhancement of activity is attributed to the Au-Pd alloy nanoparticles effectively separating the oxidation and reduction sites, thereby promoting charge-separation efficiency and providing abundant catalytically active sites to enhance the reactivity of BiPO4. The excellent photocatalytic performance is also attributed to the moderated conduction band position and an optimum Au-Pd weight percentage. This material provides a promising strategy for degradation of volatile organic compounds. (C) 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.