© 2019 Elsevier Inc. Successful water treatment is one of the most important aspects for a healthy human life and environmental protection. This study deals with the investigation of a modified catalytic material that is used in water treatment as one of the most promising filter media for water deironing. The activated carbon granules were coated with iron oxide by solution combustion synthesis (SCS) method in a muffle furnace oven. We investigated obtained samples using different diffraction and spectroscopic methods. The elemental composition of the surface and phases of produced materials and the results of comparative analysis with initial samples of the raw material used for the underground water deironing were presented. Using the SCS method, active coal granules were modified with a formation of fine dispersed and crystalline structures of magnetite on their surface. This had a positive effect on the catalytic capacity of the material for deironing of underground water as well as for the specific surface area increase. The residual concentration of total iron in the first portions of the filtrate when using modified samples was almost 3 times lower than for initial material.