ZnO coated potassium titanate whisker (PTW) was prepared via a facile chemical method, and coupling agent KH550 was used to modify the surface of ZnO coated PTW. Scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, ultraviolet spectrophotometer and surface contact angle measurement were used to characterize the effect of surface modification. The results showed that the surface of PTW was uniformly coated by ZnO nanoparticles, and exhibited better ultraviolet absorption when the coating amount of ZnO was 5%. After modified by KH550, the modified ZnO/PTW showed better dispersion in ethanol solvent and the surface of modified ZnO/PTW became more hydrophobic-lipophilic than that of modified uncoated PTW. The method of inorganic-organic surface modification of PTW might be an effective way to greatly improve the compatibility of the whisker and the polymer matrix. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.