One-pot in situ hydrophobic modification of porous polymer monoliths for selective oil absorption

Abstract Porous polymer monoliths were fabricated by polymerizing glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) in the presence of a porogen and stearylamine for in situ modification. The stearylamine-modified polymer monolith (SA-PGMA) exhibited enhanced hydrophobicity and oleophilicity compared to unmodified PGMA, while maintaining its porous structure. This resulted in contrasting absorption behavior of water and hexadecane, suggesting the potential of SA-PGMA monoliths for water/oil separation.