TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - INORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preparation (Claimed): Preparation of the alkaline catalyst comprises adding (102) a first metal hydroxide to an aqueous solution, adding (104) a second metal hydroxide to the aqueous solution, mixing (106) the aqueous solution, subjecting (108) the aqueous solution to a magnetic field of at least 5000 gauss, and dehydrating (110) the aqueous solution to form a solid alkaline catalyst. Preferred Components: The aqueous solution produces at least 8 l of hydrogen per 5 gram of hydrogen generation metal. The first metal hydroxide and the second metal hydroxide independently comprise potassium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide, calcium hydroxide, magnesium hydroxide, lithium hydroxide, strontium hydroxide, and thorium hydroxide. The first metal hydroxide is potassium hydroxide and the second metal hydroxide is sodium hydroxide. The first metal and the second metal are metal ions independently consisting of potassium, sodium, calcium, iron, magnesium, lithium, strontium, and thorium. The first metal and the second metal are present in the alkaline catalyst in a molar ratio of 1:8-8:1. The hydrogen generation metal comprises aluminum, magnesium, zinc (all preferred), chromium, iron, cobalt, nickel, tin, lead, and/or their alloys. The aqueous solution is an alkaline solution having a pH of 8-14 using water as solution base. Preferred Method: The catalyst preparation method further comprises: heating the aqueous solution to a temperature of 160-210 degrees F for a period of time of 10 minutes to 4 hours; and transferring the aqueous solution to a glove box with an inert environment prior to dehydrating. The method further comprises: initially heating the aqueous solution to a temperature of at least 120 degrees F at which point heating is no longer provided during production of hydrogen; and maintaining the production temperature by at least partially removing the heat. The alkaline catalyst is added in an amount of 10-150 g per liter of aqueous solution. The aqueous solution reacts with the hydrogen generation metal in the presence of the alkaline catalyst to produce the hydrogen and heat. The step of removing the heat is accomplished by a heat exchanger. The first metal hydroxide is added in an amount of 10-150 g per liter of solution. The second metal hydroxide is added in an amount of 10-150 g per liter of solution. The mixing step is performed simultaneous as adding the first metal hydroxide, adding the second metal hydroxide, or during both adding steps. The step of subjecting the aqueous solution to the magnetic field is carried out for a period of time of 10 minutes to 4 hours. EXAMPLE - 100 g of Potassium hydroxide and 200 g of sodium hydroxide were mixed in 500 ml of water in a vessel. The mixture was heated to 98 degrees F for 240 minutes. The mixture was then subjected to a magnetic field of 5000 gauss for 240 minutes. The mixture was dehydrated by evaporating the water to obtain 300 g of catalyst.