hey a quick question:

if one wanted to do all of the "high-risk" steps, so to speak, in advance, having the solutions ready to add without having to mix them during the entire process, could one mix up the NaOH and H2O in advance, keeping it sealed in a bottle, jar or other safe vessel?

without the other elements in the mix, would there be the same type of expansion and pressure buildup? i'd hate to mix it up, leave it, and have it explode...

it thought it might be nice to just have that solution to add at the appropriate time already mixed up.

it's not so much laziness, but kitchen strategy.

thanks

Seeing as chemical supply houses sell standard solutions of sodium hydroxide, clearly yes.

If you're just being prepared and not storing your solution for weeks this should be fine. Just make sure there's absolutely no way that anyone could accidentally drink the solution.

Try to use borosilicate glass or HDPE for your storage container. Definitely do NOT use PET bottles (i.e. most plastic drinks bottles) as these will dissolve.

As far as exploding goes, that would only be likely if you were to use an aluminium bottle

Appart from what he said ^ , the other risk of exploding would be if you'd add a bunch of NaOH to water and then closing the bottle immediately. First add gradually and mix well, let the temperature stabilize and then close the bottle.

There is a bottle of NaOH that has been in solution for 14 years in the research laboratory that I work in.

no worries
only problem with NaOH would be it absorbing CO2 to turn into Na2CO3, you can test this by adding a few drops of strong acid, vinegar may take longer time to give off bubbles, hydrochloric acid would be preferred, if bubbles emerge its likely that the NaOH has absorbed CO2, which it then gives off upon meeting acid
NaOH can etch glass, but not very well at room temperature, HDPE would be preferred however, if you find a LDPE bottle, you may be able to turn it into HDPE by simply dumping into boiling water, hoping the lid can still be screwed on is the next step