This paper reviews the research progress in non-energy utilizations of lignite,such as in the preparation of chemicals by oxidation,humic acid and functional carbon materials.Although the non-energy utilization can enrich the utilization model of lignite and increase remarkably economic added value of lignite,there still exist problems of strict operation conditions,difficult in products separating and low conversion rate.Therefore,further researches on structure and composition of lignite are needed.The related application researches developed according to the structure and reaction characteristics of lignite with different components will play an important role in improving the efficiency of non-energy utilization of lignite.