ABSTRACT:Sodium alginate( SA) which is a natural polysaccharide has attracted wide attention not only due to the simple gelatinization conditions and easy operation process，but also its good biodegradability and excellent biocompatibility． Apart from that，compositing with other chemical substances improves the properties of SA gels． They will show a promising application prospect in water treatment area in the future． The article reviews the research advance of the structure characteristics，the physical-chemical and adsorption properties of SA composite gels． Besides，the classifications and preparation methods of SA composite gels are summarized and concluded systematically． In addition，we further analyze and compare the research problems and progress of SA composite gels used as adsorbents in water treatment． At last，we point out the further research direction and applications of SA composite gels in order to provide some suggestion to solve water pollution problems