B Reagent
Anhydrous ether.-Wash commercial ether with 2 or 3 portions H2O ,add solid NaOH or KOH, and let stand until most of H2O is abstracted from the ether.Decant into dry bottle,and small pieces of cearefully cleaned metallic Na, and let stand until H2 evolutionceases. Keep ether , thus dehydrated, over metallic Na in loosely stoppered bottles. (Caution: See Appendix B, safety notes on so-dium metal and diethyl ether.)