Abstract: Volatile organic compounds(VOCs) were the major reason for air pollution in China, mainly from industrial emissions, containing hydrocarbon, aldehydes, alcohols, ethers and ketones, etc. The granular activated carbon is often applied in the fixed bed. When the activated carbon adsorbs the VOCs, the adsorption heat is released. VOCs adsorption by activated carbon had became the main environmental protection technology at present. However, in the process of VOCs adsorption by activated carbon, the generation of adsorption heat could easily lead to the increase of activated carbon bed temperature, resulting in the fire of activated carbon bed that was a major safety hazard. Therefore, this paper reviewed and analyzed the main factors affecting the ignition point of activated carbon, such as the raw materials, preparation methods and post-treatment processes of activated carbon, from the aspects of the structure and properties of activated carbon, adsorption operation methods and conditions, and VOCs components. The effects of adsorption process such as air humidity, oxygen content, gas flow rate, activated carbon bed depth, and adsorption conditions on the temperature rise of activated carbon bed provided a reference for systematically mastering and evaluating the application safety of activated carbon in gas phase adsorption process. Finally, the main technical problems in this field were pointed out.