Abstract: Firstly, nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) suspension was acquired through the sulfuric acid hydrolyzed microcrystalline cellulose (MCC). Then, dialdehyde cellulose water solution was prepared by the sodium periodate of NCC suspension. At last, DAC water solution was directly mixed with chitosan (CTS) acetic acid solution to prepare the membrane-forming solution. DAC-cross-linked CTS membranes were fabricated by solution casting technique. Their structure and properties were characterized by FT-IR, the cross-linking degree and acid stability. As an adsorbent, the adsorption performances of the cross-linked membranes toward the anionic dye of reactive brilliant blue KN-R were investigated. The results showed that the cross-linked membranes had better acid resistance and tensile strength than the pure CTS membrane. The cross-linked membrane reached the maximum adsorption capacity toward the reactive brilliant blue KN-R, 1 118.8 mg/g, when m(DAC):m(CTS) was 3%. In addition, the adsorption process was in accordance with the Langmuir adsorption isotherm model and pseudo-second-order kinetic models.