Abstract: The radial structure of polyacrylonitrile fibers oxidized before carbonization and its distribution directly affect the performance of the resulting carbon fibers. Optimizing the radial distribution of the oxidized structure and establishing a relationship between this structure and the mechanical properties of the final carbon fibers will help optimize the oxidation conditions for the preparation of high-performance carbon fibers. Solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, optical microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and mechanical tests were used to investigate the effect of the oxidation reaction rate on the radial distribution of the structure of the oxidized fibers and the mechanical properties of the resulting carbon fibers. The oxidation reaction rates were controlled by regulating the oxidation temperature gradient. Results show that the degree of oxidation increases with both the average and initial oxidation rates. By increasing the average oxidation reaction rate, the oxidized structure penetrates deeper into the core region of the fibers, the content of oxygen-containing functional groups increases, the thermal stability of the fibers decreases, and the degree of graphitization of the final carbon fibers increases, but the density of the fibers is decreased and their mechanical properties are degraded. Compared with sample obtained with the lower initial oxidation rate, the number of oxygen-containing functional groups, thermal stability, degree of graphitization and density of the final carbon fibers of the sample with the higher initial oxidation rate are higher, and its tensile strength and modulus are respectively 4.2% and 2.2% higher. A new type of carbon fiber with high strength, medium modulus and a relatively large diameter is obtained under the optimized oxidation conditions.