Adsorption behavior of unstable proteins, i.e., bovine serum albumin and (alpha)-lactalbumin, has been studied on a hydrophobic interaction chromatography medium under mass overloading conditions at different kosmotropic salt concentrations in the mobile phase. A mechanistic model has been formulated and used to describe kinetics and thermodynamics of protein interactions with the adsorbent surface. The model assumed two-site binding adsorption and reversible protein unfolding, which allowed predicting the inhibition of protein unfolding at high column loadings. A simplified procedure for the determination of model parameters has been developed, which was based on the inverse method. The model was successfully used to reproduce the pattern of chromatographic elution as well as the course of breakthrough curves. The model formulation was supported by Nano Differential Scanning Fluorimetry measurements, which were exploited to determine the protein stability in the liquid and adsorbed phases at different column loadings and salt concentrations. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.