Mesoporous carbon xerogels were prepared by carbonization of resorcinol-formaldehyde xerogel in presence of tannic acid as a soft-template at 700oC for 30, 60 and 90 min, respectively. Morphology, textural, surface functional surface groups and thermal analyses were measured. Their efficiency in liquid-adsorption of cadmium ions and PNP in a batch mode was carried out. Effect of some key factors such as pH, carbon dose, and contact time of cadmium ions and PNP as well as kinetic adsorption studies were performed. It was found that the obtained carbon xerogels of mesoporous structure have a moderate total surface area reached to 268 m2/g with various surface functional groups are effective sites for adsorbing cadmium ions and PNP from aqueous solutions. The adsorption behavior of both adsorbates on the prepared carbon samples was best described by the pseudo-second-order kinetic and Langmuir adsorption models. The maximum adsorption capacities of cadmium ions and PNP were 99 and 133 mg/g, respectively; onto the prepared carbon xerogel at 700oC and 60 min. As a result of these observations, the produced mesoporous carbon samples are very effective adsorbents for extracting considerable amounts of cadmium ions and PNP from aqueous solutions.