The book provides the scientific community with a much-needed overview of how adsorbents based on inexpensive waste materials can be used to treat various major water pollutants. This work focuses on design, surface modification and characterization of these materials, thereby leading to an understanding of the role that sorption mechanism plays in treating water pollution. The introductory section deals with a comprehensive overview of various techniques applied for water treatment, the complexity involved and advantages of sorption technique. The following sections then present novel surface modification methods for adsorbents depending on the pollutants and different methodology used to characterize them. The results and discussion section highlights the efficacy of the novel adsorbents in removing various water pollutants and the mechanisms involved in the sorption process. The book concludes with a conclusion chapter enlisting the salient features of the investigation and scope for future work. The result is a reliable reference for those wanting to learn more about this important class of inexpensive adsorbents, as well as scientists in the field seeking deeper insight.