Metal ion adsorption in saturated aqueous potassium dihydrogen phosphate solution was analyzed using kinetic, equilibrium model and computational chemistry approaches. The isotherm constants (K-F and n) in the Freundlich model and the first order Lagergren kinetic model parameter k assist with a general understanding of the fundamental adsorption behavior of trivalent and divalent metal ions. The electrostatic force based on electrostatic potential distribution was found to be an essential feature for metal ion adsorption via a correlation between the ESP values of each metal ion and these experimental parameters. (C) 2008 Published by Elsevier B. V.