Progress in surfactants with acetal group in molecular structure

The surfactants with acetal group in molecular structure is a type of easily cleavable surfactants.In acidic conditions the acetal group (-O-CHR-O-) can be easily hydrolyzed into RCHO and fragment componds that have no surface activity and are biodegradable and friendly to the environment.They are stable in alkali condition even at very high pH value.In accordance with the molecular structural characteristics,the paper reviews the synthesis method,physical and chemical properties,and applications of three sorts of surfactants with acetal group,cyclic acetal,alkyl glucoside,and linear polyoxyalkylene acetal.