Introduction. Attapulgite (APT) is a naturally fibrous hydrated aluminum mag-nesium silicate mineral with rod-like morphology, large specific sur-face area, moderate cationic exchange capacity and reactive hydroxyl groups on its surface. Now, APT has been widely used for the bleaching of the edible oil owing to its large specific surface area, less oil stagnancy and relatively perfect decoloring efficiency. Material and methods. A series of carbon/attapulgite (C/APT) composites were fabricated by calcining chitosan/attapulgite (CTS/APT) composite and used as adsorbents for the efficient bleaching of palm oil. The effects of the dosage of CTS and calcinations temperature on the structure characteristics of C/APT composites were investigated by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), X-Rey Diffractometer (XRD), Thermo Gravimetic Analysis (TGA), Tranmission Electron Microscope (TEM) and N2 adsorption–desorption isotherm techniques. Results and discussion. Found that the specific surface area, pore size distribution, and surface morphology of C/APT composites were affected by the calcinations process. The CTS macromolecular chains attached on the surface of APT were transformed into carbon after being calcined at above 280°C, which facilitate to enlarge the pore size of the composite and create the new active adsorption sites.The bleaching efficiency of the composite for palm oil was greatly improved after in situ introducing carbon on APT. Conclusion. The as-prepared composites, the Red value and the content of peroxide and phospholipid decreased by 57.36%, 76.34% and 43.11%, respectively; but the commercial bleaching earth can only decrease these values by 38.76%, 71.59% and 10.15%, respectively. The composite adsorbents derived from low costandeco-friendly raw materials show excellent bleaching efficiency, and can be used aspromising eco-friendly decolorizer for refining of edible oils.