Ion-imprinted silica gel polymers prepared by surface imprinting technique have attracted extensive research interests due to their several advantages. Changgen Feng and colleagues describe the synthesis of a surface-imprinting, silica gel polymer functionalized with phosphonic acid groups for selective adsorption of Fe(III) from aqueous solution. This polymer shows a series of good characteristics such as high chemical stability, fast adsorption and desorption kinetics, high adsorption capacity, excellent selectivity, and good regeneration. This polymer is a promising candidate sorbent for the selective adsorption of Fe(III) from aqueous solutions. (DOI: 10.1002/app.45165).