Researchers optimized pretreatment methods for corn stover to produce sugar-rich hydrolysates for making biodegradable plastic (PHB). Steam explosion at specific temperatures and times yielded the highest reducing sugar concentrations. Dilute acid pretreatment decreased sugar yield, making steam explosion alone sufficient. The optimized conditions resulted in hydrolysates suitable for PHB production, with a maximum concentration of 1.81 g/L achieved after bacterial fermentation.