A functional assembly of SiO2 nanospheres/graphene oxide composites

•SiO2/GO assembly is synthesized by the one-step hydrothermal technique.•The assembly has strong RhB adsorption capacity, which fits with a Langmuir model.•The reduction activity using N2H2 as a sacrificial electron donor was 50% of that of RhB.•The assembly stained by RhB can be used in high visibility paint products.

A novel assembly of SiO2 nanospheres functionalized on graphene oxide (GO) sheets was prepared by a one-step microwave-hydrothermal method. The nanocomposites were well characterized and investigated to study their Rhodamine B (RhB) adsorption capacity and their RhB reduction activity using hydrazine as a sacrificial electron donor. The SiO2–GO–RhB composites showed fluorescent properties.

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