[poof]

Im fairly new at this, so please keep it simple.

Im currently in the middle of an a/b extraction using KOH as the base and xylene as the nonpolar solvent. Im not entirely clear on this, but i have been told that strong bases like NaOH and KOH make it into the solvent, but to keep the desired alkaloid in its base form you cannot add HCl water to neutralize it. So how can i neutralize or remove a dissolved basic compound like KOH in a non polar solvent without using acid?  Is this basic premise of this correct?

[lavoisier]

I'd say no KOH or NaOH can actually dissolve in xylene. I would be really surprised. If you happen to find them in the organic layer, it's probably because you've got some droplets of the water layer in the organic layer.

My guess is that you just need to dry the organic layer (e.g. with sodium sulfate or magnesium sulfate), filter it, and the hydroxides will just stay on the filter with the hydrated salt.

[poof]

Thanks, that makes sense now that i think about it.