Bagasse fibers were chemically modified with the aim to prepare lignocellulosic materials that have the ability to remove heavy metal ions from waste water. Three different reactions were used for the modification: etherification using monochloroacetic acid, esterification using succinic anhydride, and oxidation using sodium periodate and sodium chlorite. Bagasse was crosslinked using epichlorohydrin before chemical modification to avoid loss of its constituents during the chemical modification or application. The structure of the prepared derivatives was proofed using Fourier transform infrared and chemical methods. The ability of the prepared bagasse cation exchangers to adsorb heavy metal ions (Cu2+, Ni2+, Cr3+, Fe3+), on a separate basis or in a mixture of them, at different metal ion concentration was tested. Thermal stability of the different bagasse derivatives was studied using thermogravimetric analysis. (c) 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.