Spherical beads of titania were prepared by a sol-gel route. During the preparation a cationic surfactant was added in the feed broth to modify the surface characteristics of the microspheres. The absorption behavior of Pu(IV) from carbonate medium on these microspheres was studied by batch experiments. Loading and elution behavior of Pu(IV) on a bed of titania microspheres was studied and the practical capacity was determined.