The sorption capacity of high-yield kraft fibers for Cd2+, Co2+, and Ni2+ increased with pH and concentration of the cations in the liquid phase. Within the concentration range for the experiments, which was less than 2 mM, the experimental results fitted the Langmuir, Freundlich, and Sips models with regression coefficient greater than 0.97. Of the three cations investigated, Ni2+ had the highest sorption affinity, followed by Cd2+ and Co2+. The effect of the hydrated radius on the sorption affinity was discussed. Thermodynamically, the sorption was spontaneous and exothermic in the temperature range 283-308 K. (c) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.