The paper presents a brief historical review and innovation R&Ds of the IPOCC Department for Coal Chemistry. These R&Ds deal with coal mine exploitation problems, prevention of spontaneous combustion, dust control in mines, structural chemical features of coal with different genesis and stages of metamorphism and new methods for their modification and rational use. The methods for obtaining inexpensive sorbents from Ukrainian raw materials (including carbon containing waste) have been proposed. The problems of modern coal chemistry science studied in the IPOCC have been outlined. K e y w o r d s: coal, structure, modification, thermolysis, nanoporous sorbents, and coke.