In this study, polyaniline grafted chitosan (PGC) was employed as an adsorbent for the removal of Pb(II) and Cd(II) ions from aqueous solution. The PGC was characterized using FTIR, SEM, EDX, XRD, TGA and DSC techniques. From the batch experiment results it can be found that the pH of the working solution played significant role in the adsorption process. In the presence of other common metal ions, the adsorption of Pb(II) and Cd(II) ions onto the PGC was negatively influenced. The equilibrium data were fitted to Langmuir, Freundlich and Dubinin-Radushkevich isotherm models. The maximum monolayer capacity obtained from the Langmuir isotherm was 16.07 and 14.33 mg/g for Pb(II) and Cd(II) ions, respectively. The kinetic data were fitted well to the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The applicability of the PGC has been tested for the removal of Pb(II) and Cd(II) ions from a real water sample spiked with Pb(II) and Cd(II). (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.