Final answer:
Glutaraldehydes are not suitable as surface disinfectants on this list; they are hospital disinfectants used for equipment known for health hazards in environmental surfaces. Phenol is the historical benchmark for disinfectant effectiveness, with chlorine being more effective as indicated by a higher phenol coefficient.
Step-by-step explanation:
All of the listed chemicals are acceptable surface disinfectants except for glutaraldehydes. Glutaraldehydes are used as hospital disinfectants but are not suitable as surface disinfectants because they are used to sterilize medical equipment and can be harmful as an environmental surface treatment. They are classified as high-level disinfectants or sterilants, and while they are effective for certain applications, their use as a surface disinfectant in routine situations is not recommended due to their health hazards.
When considering the effectiveness of chemical disinfectants, historically, it has been compared to that of phenol. Phenol was the first chemical agent used by Joseph Lister and the benchmark for determining the efficacy of other disinfectants, which was quantified by the phenol coefficient. A higher phenol coefficient indicates a disinfectant more effective than phenol, like chlorine with coefficients greater than 1.0.
Therefore, glutaraldehydes are the exception and not typically used as a surface disinfectant for general purposes.