Abstract: Red mud( RM) is a large amount of industrial solid waste produced in the process of extracting alumina from bauxite by Bayer process,which has large accumulation,low comprehensive utilization rate and high ecological risk. The pollution of heavy metals in water is a global environmental problem,the environmental hazards of red mud and heavy metals can't be avoided,and the coupling treatment of the two has attracted wide attention of scholars. This paper mainly reviewed the new progress of modified red mud adsorption of heavy metals at home and abroad,through summarizing and reviewing the properties of red mud,modification methods and heavy metal adsorption characteristics,the ways and reaction mechanism of red mud adsorption of typical heavy metal ions were analyzed. The influencing factors and problems to be solved in the adsorption of heavy metals by red mud were summarized. The possibility of large-scale utilization of red mud in environmental adsorption materials was prospected.