TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - INORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Compound: The borohydride is sodium borohydride or lithium borohydride. The hydride is sodium hydride.    TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - ORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Condition: The volume percentage of the diol in alcohol solution is about 5-50 vol.% ethanediol in a tert-butanol solution and about 0.1-0.001 vol.% Lewis/Bronsted acid catalyst at about 40-60degreesC to form an ethanediol-Lewis/Bronsted acid mixture. A borohydride is added to the ethanediol Lewis/Bronsted acid mixture at about 1:2 mole ratio to produce sodium tetraalkoxyborate and controlled alcoholysis of sodium hydroboride. Preferred Method: The preparation of the diol-catalyst mixture includes preparing a cyclic borate ester derived from alcoholysis of sodium borohydride. The borohydride is added to the diol-catalyst mixture by, adding a hydride to the cyclic borate ester of at least about 1:4 mole ratio in an ether solvent at about 1200-1700degreesC for about 4-30 hours to provide a regenerated sodium borohydride; or by adding sodium hydride to the sodium tetraalkoxyborate at about 1:6 mole ratio in about 0.3M diglyme solvent at about 150degreesC for about 24 hours to regenerate sodium borohydride. The regenerated borohydride may also be prepared by, reacting an aluminum hydride to the borate compound in a solvent by, adding an aluminum hydride to the cyclic borate ester at least about 1:1 mole ratio in the solvent at about room temperature for about 2-50 hours. The aluminum hydride is reacted to the borate compound by, adding lithium hydride and aluminum chloride to the lithium tetraalkoxyborate at about 4:1:1 mole ratio in about 0.2-0.3M tetrahydrofuran solvent at about room temperature to 1 hour to provide aluminum hydride and regenerate lithium borohydride. If the borate compound is cyclic borate complex, the reaction of aluminum hydride to the cyclic borate complex involves, adding the aluminum hydride to the cyclic borate complex at 1:1 mole ratio in a tetrahydrofuran solvent at about room temperature for about 7 hours to provide the regenerated borohydride. If the borohydride is lithium borohydride and the borate compound is lithium borate complex, the reaction involves adding lithium aluminum hydride to the lithium borate complex at about 1:1 mole ratio in about 0.2-0.3M tetrahydrofuran solvent at about room temperature for about 7 hours to regenerate lithium borohydride. If the borate compound is a cyclic borate ester, the reaction involves adding aluminum hydride to the cyclic borate ester at about 1:1 mole ratio in a tetrahydrofuran solvent at about room temperature for 6-80 hours to provide the regenerated borohydride. If the borate compound is sodium tetraalkoxyborate, the reaction involves adding sodium aluminum hydride to the sodium tetraalkoxyborate at about 1:1 mole ratio in about 0.2-0.3M tetrahydrofuran solvent at about room temperature for about 6 hours to regenerate sodium borohydride. If the borate compound is trialkylborate, the reaction involves adding a hydride and aluminum chloride to trialkyl borate of at least about 4:1:1 mole ratio in tetrahydrofuran solvent at about room temperature for about 8-20 hours to provide aluminum hydride and generated borohydride. The reaction may also involve adding sodium hydride and aluminum chloride to the trialkyl borate of at least about 4:1:1 mole ratio in tetrahydrofuran solvent at about room temperature for about 16-24 hours to provide the generated sodium borohydride. If the trialkylborate is trimethyl borate and the borohydride is lithium borohydride, the reaction involves adding lithium hydride and aluminum chloride to the trimethyl borate at about 4:1:1 mole ratio in about 0.2-0.3M tetrahydrofuran solvent at about room temperature for about 18 hours to provide aluminum hydride and generate lithium borohydride. If the borohydride is sodium borohydride and the borate compound is trimethyl borate, the reaction involves adding sodium hydride and aluminum chloride to trimethyl borate at about 4:1:1 mole ratio in about 0.2-0.3M tetrahydrofuran solvent at about room temperature to about 16 hours to generate sodium borohydride. Lithium borohydride may also be generated by, adding lithium hydride and aluminum chloride to boric acid at about 8:2:1 mole ratio in about 0.2-0.3M tetrahydrofuran solvent at about room temperature for about 4 hours to generate lithium borohydride. Preferred Component: The borate compound is sodium tetraalkoxy borate, lithium tetraalkoxyborate, a cyclic borate complex (preferably lithium borate complex), a cyclic borate ester, or trialkylborate (preferably trimethyl borate. Preferred Solvent: The solvent is tetrahydrofuran. EXAMPLE - A stirred mixture was prepared comprising sodium borohydride at 2.64 mmol (100 mg) and ethylene glycol at 5.29 mmol (0.3 ml). A drop of hydrochloric acid (3N) was added. Vigorous evolution of hydrogen gas was observed. The reaction was instantaneous and the hydrogen evolved was collected in an analytical gas burette, giving a yield of about 100%.