Studies on the adsorption of phenol fi om aqueous solution by using pretreated noncoking low-grade bituminous coal are reported. The coal showed better adsorption after oxidation for more than 6h. Extraction with quinoline and ethylenediamine also showed a remarkable increase in phenol adsorption. However the coupling of oxidation and solvent extraction did not seem to help in improving the adsorption. The particle size of the coal showed no relation to the degree of oxidation, or to the period of adsorption. The solvent-extracted residual coal showed almost 43% adsorption of phenol, which was equivalent to that observed for activated carbon. Adsorption of phenol on low-grade coals or on residual coals obtained after solvent extraction (organosolvo-refining) may upgrade those fuels. Further studies may be required before using the phenol-adsorbed coal/solvent-extracted residual coal as a fuel.