OICC Press International Journal of Industrial Chemistry 2228-5547 15 3 2024 09 20 Sugarcane bagasse as a material in the production of polylactic acid 1 11 10.57647/j.ijic.2024.1503.17 EN Avell´an Rengifo Adriana Cecilia Department of Chemical Processes, Food and Biotechnology, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Chemical Engineering Degree, Universidad T´ecnica de Manab´ı, Ecuador https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2317-587X Mendoza Palma Angie Nicole Department of Chemical Processes, Food and Biotechnology, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Chemical Engineering Degree, Universidad T´ecnica de Manab´ı, Ecuador https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2300-0014 Wilmer Ponce National Institute of Agricultural Research, Portoviejo Experimental Station, Portoviejo, Ecuador https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4250-5184 Mar´ıa Antonieta Riera Department of Chemical Processes, Food and Biotechnology, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Chemical Engineering Degree, Universidad T´ecnica de Manab´ı, Ecuador https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7195-2821 Journal Article 2024 09 20 Sugarcane bagasse (SCB) is an abundant, renewable, and low-cost lignocellulosic material from sugarcane juice extraction. The SCB was used as a substrate for the production of lactic acid (LA), with Lactobacillus helveticus/Streptococcus thermophilus as bacteria, in different fermentation conditions: (4, 8, 24, 48, 72) hours, and (37, 40)◦C. The highest concentration of LA was 3.56 g/L at 40◦C after 72 hours of fermentation. The polymerization of LA was the ring opening method, obtaining 1.15 g of PLA with a yield of 19.29% and  0.12% concerning lactide and SCB. Although the concentration obtained is low concerning other research, the SCB use in countrieswith high sugar cane production represents an eco-friendly proposal for producing organic acids and biobased polymers with properties similar to the synthetic origin. This research provides an environmental solution to the problem of agribusiness waste and a proposal with the potential to develop new products.