Although perchlorate (ClO4-) has a detrimental effect on human health, there have been limited solutions for the permanent degradation of perchlorate due to its extraordinary stability. Here an integrated process com-bining a physical adsorption and a catalytic degradation by using Pd/activated carbon (Pd/AC) and Pd/N-doped activated carbon (Pd/N-AC) as an adsorption/catalysis bi-functional material was demonstrated. During the perchlorate adsorption from waste water, the porous structure of the carbon provides adsorption sites for perchlorate. Pd/N-AC exhibited 38 ~ 52 % higher adsorption capacities than Pd/AC both in the presence and absence of competing ions (NO3-, SO42- and HCO3-). This can be attributed to the more positive surface charge of Pd/N-AC as revealed by zeta potential measurement. After the carbon surface is saturated with perchlorate, the adsorbed perchlorate can be fully decomposed by the catalytic function of supported Pd catalysts within 2 h under flowing H2 at 503 K. The perchlorate adsorption/catalytic decomposition cycle can be repeated up to three times without the loss of perchlorate adsorption capacity. Because the carbon adsorbents can be regenerated by using H2 as a green reducing agent (producing only H2O), significant cost savings and a favorable environmental impact can be realized compared with the conventional perchlorate removal strategies.