Chemicals, Energy, and Biomaterials from Agricultural Waste Resources in South China

Owing to its subtropical or tropical environment and climate, South China is home to unique agricultural crops such as sugar cane, pineapple, banana, cassava, and rice, which generate a large amount of lignocellulosic agricultural wastes during agricultural as well as associated industrial processing. The efficient utilization of these wastes will have a significant impact on the economy and sustainable development of South China. This paper reviews the research investigations conducted both in China and elsewhere on the conversion of wastes from these subtropical or tropical agricultural crops into useful chemicals, energy, and biomaterials. The goal of this paper is to promote and summarize the extensive investigations on these agricultural wastes for the development of biorefinery.