In this study, flower-like CuO was successfully synthesized by a microwave ultrasound assisted method and well characterized by X-ray diffractions, Fourier transform infrared spectrum, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, specific surface area, UV-vis diffused reflection spectra, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and point of zero charge. The photocatalytic performance of the as prepared CuO was examined on the Cr(VI) reduction in the presence of tartaric acid under simulated solarlight irradiation. The results show that the developed CuO catalyst exhibited good photocatalytic activity with 100% reduction of Cr(VI) after irradiation of 30 min under the test condition of c(Cr(VI)) = 100 mu M, catalyst loading = 400 mg/L, c(tartaric acid) = 4 mM and initial pH = 3. The reaction mechanism was proposed. The effects of test parameters, such as catalyst loading, tartaric acid concentration and initial pH, on Cr(VI) reduction efficiency were also investigated. It is worth mentioning that the developed catalyst can work at a relatively wide range of pH with quite high catalytic performance. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.