FUCK YEA!!!Now I realize that this does not mean that the following idea will work, but fuck yea anyway! That is so cool.
Why thank you,
Osmium.
I was thinking about possible indirect electrosynthesis of alkalai alkoxides via an amalgam intermediate phase.
Here's a major example relevant to the idea, the exact one that gave me the concept:
Picture a cross-section diagram of a "square" reaction vessel. The vessel has two verticle levels of floor depth, the lower being toward the center, slightly off to one side, and being only a small degree lower than the rest of the floor (say maybe ~2cm deeper.) The vessel has a verticle partition at the first third across mark, which extends below the upper floor, into the depression, but not to the lower floor.
The basin is filled with liquid metallic mercury. Now we have an effective bisection of our reaction chamber, the bisecting wall being comprised of the verticle wall dipped into the mercury basin, giving rise to two seperate chambers on either side of the mercury.
One chamber contains an electrode. The other chamber is barren. A second electrode is intoduced into the mercury, not extending into either chamber itself.
The chamber with the electrode is charged with concentrated aqueous sodium hydroxide. The barren chamber is charged with anhydrous alcohol, specifically isopropanol in the brainstorm.
Electrolysis is begun, with the mercury acting as the negative cathode, and the aquatic electrode acting as the positive anode. Oxygen gas is produced at the aquatic anode.
The cationic/positive sodium ions attract to the negative mercury, and one of two things happens:
1.The sodium free radical is absorbed into the mercury, forming what is called an amalgam (a solution with Hg as solvent/an alloy with mercury) and the sodium diffuses throughout the mercury.
2.The sodium radical reacts with water first, regenerating sodium hydroxide, and evolving hydrogen gas. The starting hydroxide has been recycled, and is subjected to the process again.
On the other side of the partition, the sodium dissolved into the mercury diffuses to the surface, in contact with the alcohol, and reacts with the alcohol, isopropanol, to procure the alkoxide, in this case sodium isopropoxide, and to evolve hydrogen gas.
The mercury, being severely "hydro-hostile" effectively prevents hydrolysis of the alkoxide by preventing the diffusion of water across the metallic partition.
Very interesting isn't it?
There are a few catches, and unknowns, but hey give me a little break here, I just thought of this an hour ago ago.
PrimoPyro
Vivent Longtemps la Ruche!