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Modified activated carbon was prepared by thermal treatment at high temperature under nitrogen flow. The surface properties of the activated carbon were characterized by Boehm titration, BET and point of zero charge determination. The adsorption mechanism of phenol on modified activated carbon was explained and the adsorption capacity of modified activated carbon for phenol when compared to plain activated carbon was evaluated through the analysis of adsorption isotherms, thermodynamic and kinetic properties. Results shows that after modification the surface alkaline property and pHpzc value of the activated carbon increase and the surface oxygen-containing functional groups decrease. The adsorption processes of the plain and modified carbon fit with Langmuir isotherm equation well, and the maximum adsorption capacity increase from 123.46, 111.11, 103.09mg/g to 192.31, 178.57, 163,93mg/g under 15, 25 and 35°C after modification, respectively. Thermodynamic parameters show that the adsorption of phenol on activated carbon is a spontaneously exothermic process of entropy reduction, implying that the adsorption is a physical adsorption. The adsorption of phenol on activated carbon follows the pseudo-second-order kinetics (R2>0.99). The optimum pH of adsorption is 6~8.