In this study, we report the fabrication and photocatalytic properties of the oriented arrays of SiC nanowires on the Si substrate. The SiC nanowire arrays were prepared by carbonizing the Si nanowire arrays with the graphite powder at 1250 degrees C. The as-prepared SiC nanowires are highly porous, which endows them with a high surface-to-volume ratio. Considering the large surface areas and the high stability, the porous SiC nanowire arrays were used as photocatalyst for water splitting under UV irradiation. It was found that such porous SiC structure exhibited an enhanced and extremely stable photocatalytic performance. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.