Wastewater-containing industrial dyes are quite harmful since most dyes are stable and toxic to humans. Detection and removing of those dyes from wastewater is necessary to ensure water supply safety. In present work, a nitrated cellulose acetate (NCA) microfiltration membrane was developed for specific absorption and visible detection of methylene blue (MB). The NCA microfiltration membrane overcomes the defect of high driven pressure in nanofiltration or ultrafiltration process. By absorption effect, the NCA membrane also overcomes the defect of low retention rate of traditional microfiltration membrane to dyes. The residual MB can be removed quickly and thoroughly by microfiltration absorption. The microfiltration membrane can also be used for visual detection of MB by concentrating the MB on membrane. The limit of detection is as low as 0.001 mg/L. The detection method is simple and free of large-scale instrument, and can be used as a portable device for spot detection of dye-contaminated water.