Palmitoyl grafted modified cellulose were prepared by simple chemical grafting method and applied as nano adsorbent for removal of pyrene from aqueous solution. The chemical properties and morphology of prepared nano-adsorbent were characterized by FT-IR, XRD, SEM, EDX, TGA, and contact angle. Results showed that palmitoyl successfully grafted on the surface of cellulose and possess effective organic functional groups for the adsorption of pyrene from aqueous solution. The adsorption performance of modified cellulose was significantly improved toward pyrene in aqueous solution. It is worthy to note that 0.25 g of palmitoyl grafted cellulose (PMC) removed 92% pyrene compared to unmodified cellulose which adsorbed 36% pyrene from 1.65 ppm aqueous solution of pyrene in very short contact time at room temperature. Results showed that, presence of various organic functional groups from palmitoyl chains grafted on cellulose backbone affected to pyrene removal. After completion of adsorption phenomenon nano-adsorbent can be removed by simply filtration process and reused several times. The adsorption capacity was studied under different experimental conditions and their effects on adsorption such as temperature, pH, and contact time were also studied. The kinetics and isotherms of material were also determined.