Dihydroxy poly(p-phenylene benzobisoxazole) (DHPBO), a modified poly(p-phenylene benzoxazole) (PBO) polymer containing double hydroxyl groups in polymer chains, was synthesized by copolymerization of 4,6-diamino resorcinol dihydrochloride (DAR), purified terephthalic acid (TA) and 2,5-dihydroxyterephthalic acid (DHTA). DHPBO fibers were prepared by dry-jet wet-spinning method. The effects of hydroxyl polar groups on the surface elemental compositions of PBO fiber were investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results show that the ratio of oxygen/carbon on the surface of DHPBO fibers is higher than that on the surface of PBO fibers, which indicates the content of polar groups on the surface of DHPBO fiber increase compared with PBO fiber. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.