A novel cellulose-based adsorbent (CGS) was synthesized by a facile, two-step modification route. It was characterized by the FTIR, XRD, and SEM technique. The adsorption characteristics of CGS were compared with those of native cellulose using crystal violet (CV) as an adsorbate in this work. The effects of contact time, temperature, pH, and initial concentration on the sorption were all investigated. The adsorption kinetics for both CGS and cellulose were found to follow a pseudo-second-order (P-S-O) kinetic model. The equilibrium data of CGS fitted well with the Langmuir isothermal model, and the maximum theoretical adsorption capacity of CGS for CV was 218.82 mg g(-1) at 50 degrees C; the adsorption increased by 70.8% compared to that of native cellulose. A thermodynamics study was also performed. The comparative study confirmed that the structure of CGS is more conducive for the adsorption of CV than cellulose. Furthermore, adsorption/desorption experiments showed that CGS could be reused for at least eight cycles with stable sorption ability after being regenerated with 50% ethanol solution (pH 3.0).