Towards Sustainable Sugarcane Biorefineries: Integrating Chemical, Enzymatic, and Microbial Strategies for Valorization of Agro-Industrial Residues

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6463-944-5_31How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Sugarcane biorefineries; chemical pretreatment; enzymatic hydrolysis; microbial fermentation; sustainability; agro-industrial residues

Abstract

Sugarcane and other sugar crops serve as vital renewable feedstocks within the global bioeconomy, underscoring the urgent need for sustainable valorization of their lignocellulosic agro-industrial residues. However, conventional first-generation (1G) biorefineries face limitations such as food-versus-fuel conflicts and resource competition, prompting a shift toward second-generation (2G) biorefineries that harness sugarcane bagasse, molasses, press mud, straw, and related residues. This review comprehensively synthesizes chemical, enzymatic, and microbial strategies employed to convert these biomass residues into value-added products. Chemical pretreatment techniques are evaluated for their roles in overcoming biomass recalcitrance while minimizing inhibitor formation. Enzymatic saccharification using cellulases, hemicellulases, and accessory enzymes is scrutinized with respect to enzyme cocktail optimization and techno-economic challenges including enzyme cost and stability. Microbial approaches encompass traditional fermentative organisms, consolidated bioprocessing methods integrating hydrolysis and fermentation, and advances in genetic and synthetic biology to enhance microbial efficiency and bioproduct specificity. Valorization products such as biofuels, organic acids, biogas, lignin-derived chemicals, and high-value co-products are examined, alongside life cycle assessments and economic feasibility studies that underscore environmental and financial trade-offs. Finally, the review discusses challenges including feedstock logistics, enzyme production costs, and policy frameworks, recommending future research directions to optimize integrated sugarcane biorefineries. This synthesis provides critical insights that advance the development of sustainable 2G sugarcane biorefineries poised to contribute significantly to the bio-based circular economy.

Copyright

© 2025 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Junaidah Mat Jusoh
AU  - Syaliza Abd Hammid
AU  - Rafidah Husen
AU  - Abdul Fattah Ab Razak
AU  - Siti Nor Ain Seri Masran
AU  - So’bah Ahmad
AU  - Hasmah Mohidin
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/12/26
TI  - Towards Sustainable Sugarcane Biorefineries: Integrating Chemical, Enzymatic, and Microbial Strategies for Valorization of Agro-Industrial Residues
BT  - Proceedings of the International Conference on Sustainable Energy: Toward Energy Transition and Net-Zero Emission (ICOSE 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 477
EP  - 504
SN  - 3005-155X
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6463-944-5_31
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6463-944-5_31
ID  - Jusoh2025
ER  -