A tricomponent electrode RuO2-PdO-TiO2/Ti was prepared and used in the electrochemical degradation of Rhodamine B. The electrode was characterized by XRD, XPS, linear-sweep voltammetry (LSV) and chronopotentiometry (CP) techniques. It was found that Ru4+ doped into the cell while Pd anchored with enriched concentration on the surface of TiO2. In the presence of Ru and Pd, the binding energy of Ru increased, while the oxygen vacancies of TiO2 decreased. This interaction of metals accordingly raised the oxygen evolution potential, decreased the chlorine evolution potential and enhanced the conductivity of the electrode. Therefore, the electrochemical ability of RuO2-PdO-TiO2/Ti anode was improved and Rhodamine B could be destructed effectively yielding a total organic carbon (TOC) removal of 71.70% within 30 min. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.