Coal-based honeycomb monoliths extruded using methods developed for ceramic materials have been used to retain methylene blue and p-nitrophenol from aqueous solutions. The influence of the filters' thermal treatment on their textural properties and performance as adsorbents was examined. Characterization by N-2 physisorption, mercury porosimetry and scanning electron microscopy along with adsorption tests under dynamic conditions suggest that, depending on the pollutant and its initial concentration, it can be more convenient to previously submit the monoliths to a simple carbonization or to an additional activation, with or without preoxidation, as a consequence of their different resulting pore structures. Infrared spectroscopy indicates that their different adsorption behaviour seems not to be related to differences in their surface chemical groups. In addition, axial crushing tests show that the monoliths have an acceptable mechanical resistance for the application investigated. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.