Coal fires pose great threats to valuable energy resources, the environment, and human health and safety. They occur in numerous countries in the world. It is well-known that China, the largest coal producer and user globally, is one of the countries that have badly suffered from coal fires. Thus, over the course of the last decade, a lot of local research studies on coal fires in China have been published in international and Chinese scientific journals. The goal of this paper is to set the scene on past and current coal fire research in China. In this review we explore multidisciplinary investigations undertaken during the last decade associated with coal fires in China including fire detection, modeling, the assessment of environmental and human health impacts as well as fire-fighting engineering. We outline a systematic framework of research on coal fires and address inter-relations of subtopics within this systematic framework. Additionally, the scientific and technical studies and their advantages, shortcomings and challenges for coal mine administrations are discussed. It is hoped that this comprehensive overview provides scientific guidance for management and coordination of coal fire projects. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.