Anodic oxidation of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) graphite fibers was investigated in comparison with that of carbon fibers. The mechanical and interfacial properties of the treated fibers along with their surface structures were studied with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, atomic force microscope, contact angle analyzer, tensile strength instrument and Raman spectrometer. The results show that the graphite fibers were inactive during anodic oxidation for the higher graphitic carbon, while the carbon fibers were active and the surface oxygen content got saturated soon. The dynamics of anodic oxidation for the fibers can be described by a homogenous thickness reduction model, which indicated that the kinetic constant of anodic oxidation for the graphite fibers was only one sixth of that for the carbon fibers. Surface roughness contributed to the improvement on fiber/matrix adhesion as well as the surface oxygen content. The achievement of the surface treatment was proved by Raman spectroscopy mapping the stress of the fiber inside an epoxy resin droplet. The increase of interfacial shear strength from the untreated graphite fibers to the anodized graphite fibers was 160% (from 65 to 170 MPa), much higher than 70% that from untreated carbon fibers to the anodized ones (from 135 to 230 MPa). (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.