The kinetics of oxidation of carbonaceous materials at low temperature (< 300 degrees C) was explored by isothermal thermogravimetry. The suggested kinetic equation is based on the assumption of three reactions - creation of the oxygen surface groups, decomposition of created oxygen surface groups and carbon burn off. Truncated Sestak-Berggren kinetic model was used for mechanism description. The optimised kinetic equation has shown the good agreement between the theoretical and experimental data and enabled calculation of conditions (temperature, oxygen pressure) for effective carbon surface oxidation (maximal oxygen chemisorption). Predicted oxygen uptake at given conditions (4.0% at 226 degrees C in 20% O-2, 4.6% at 196 degrees C in 50% O-2 and 4.5% at 205 degrees C in 80% O-2) was confirmed experimentally with a very good agreement. Application of developed carbon oxidation kinetics description allows predicting optimized conditions for preparation of highly surface oxidized carbonaceous materials.