The method of synthesis of polymeric membranes based on polyethersulfone (PES) and modified by addition of carbonaceous materials (char or activated carbon) is presented and their potential application for removal of copper ions from liquid phase are examined. The addition of carbon brings about changes in the content of the surface oxygen group but has no significant effect on the chemical character of the groups, and acidic groups dominate. After filtration of a copper solution the total content of surface oxides considerably increases but the acidic groups remain dominant. Modification of PES membrane by addition of carbonaceous materials was found to strongly increase the membrane effectiveness in copper ions removal. The membrane with addition of char is the most effective at low copper concentrations, while the membrane with addition of activated carbon is the best at high concentrations of copper ions. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.