The invention relates to a method for cleaving silicon-silicon bindings and/or silicon-chlorine bindings in monosilanes, polysilanes, and/or oligosilanes. According to the invention, the monosilane, polysilane, and/or oligosilane is dissolved or suspended in an ether or in an ether-hydrochloric acid solution. Said method is used for example for preparing halogenated oligosilanes from halogenated polysilanes and for preparing siloxanes from organochlorosilanes and chlorinated monosilanes. Said method is particularly simple to carry out and as a result is economical.

Dichlorosilane and trichlorosilane are dehydrogenated at elevated temperature in the presence of an ammonium or phosphonium salt as a catalyst, and a halogenated hydrocarbon or hydrogen halide. The method may be used to synthesize organochlorosilane.

A method of producing a halosiloxane, the method comprising: i) combining water, a halosilane, and a first solvent to form a reaction mixture, ii) partially hydrolyzing and condensing the halosilane to form a reaction product mixture comprising the halosiloxane, the solvent, unreacted halosilane, and hydrogen halide, iii) adding a second solvent, where the second solvent has a boiling point the boiling point of the halosiloxane, to the reaction mixture in i) or to the reaction product mixture in ii), and iv) recovering the halosiloxane from the reaction product mixture.

Methods of synthesizing fluorosilanes containing cyano-substituted alkyl groups are provided. For example, 3-cyanopropyldimethylfluorosilane may be produced by reacting tetramethyldisiloxane and boron trifluoride to obtain fluorodimethylsilane and then reacting the fluorodimethylsilane with allyl cyanide, in the presence of a hydrosilylation catalyst.

A method for producing an organohalosilanes comprising reacting an organic compound comprising a halogen-substituted or unsubstituted alkane, a halogen-substituted or unsubstituted alkene, or an aromatic compound and at least one hydridohalosilane of formula R.sub.nSiH.sub.mX.sub.4-m-n, wherein each R is independently C-.sub.1-C-.sub.14 hydrocarbyl or C-.sub.1-C-.sub.14 halogen-substituted hydrocarbyl, X is fluoro, chloro, bromo, or iodo, n is 0, 1, or 2, m is 1, 2 or 3, and m+n=1, 2 or 3, in the presence of a heterogeneous catalyst comprising an oxide of one or more of the elements Sc, Y, Ti, Zr, Hf, B, Al, Ga, In, C, Si, Ge, Sn, or Pb, at a temperature greater than 100 C., and at a pressure of at least 690 kPa, to produce a crude reaction product comprising the organohalosilane.

Dichlorosilane and trichlorosilane are dehydrogenated at elevated temperature in the presence of an ammonium or phosphonium salt as a catalyst, and a halogenated hydrocarbon or hydrogen halide. The method may be used to synthesize organochlorosilane.

Methods of synthesizing fluorosilanes containing cyano-substituted alkyl groups are provided. For example, 3-cyanopropyldimethylfluorosilane may be produced by reacting tetramethyldisiloxane and boron trifluoride to obtain fluorodimethylsilane and then reacting the fluorodimethylsilane with allyl cyanide, in the presence of a hydrosilylation catalyst.

A method for producing an organohalosilanes comprising reacting an organic compound comprising a halogen-substituted or unsubstituted alkane, a halogen-substituted or unsubstituted alkene, or an aromatic compound and at least one hydridohalosilane of formula R.sub.nSiH.sub.mX.sub.4-m-n, wherein each R is independently C-.sub.1-C-.sub.1 4 hydrocarbyl or C-.sub.1-C-.sub.1 4 hologen-substituted hydrocarbyl, X is fluoro, chloro, bromo, or iodo, n is 0, 1, or 2, m is 1, 2 or 3, and m+n=1, 2 or 3, in the presence of a heterogeneous catalyst comprising an oxide of one or more of the elements Sc, Y, Ti, Zr, Hf, B, Al, Ga, In, C, Si, Ge, Sn, or Pb, at a temperature greater than 100 C., and at a pressure of at least 690 kPa, to produce a crude reaction product comprising the organohalosilane.

A method of synthesizing a high purity acryloxyalkyldimethylchlorosilane involves (a) reacting an acrylate salt with a haloalkyldimethylalkoxysilane to form an acryloxy-substituted alkyldimethylalkoxysilane; and (b) displacing the alkoxy group in the acryloxy-substituted alkyldimethylalkoxysilane using a chloride-containing compound to form the acryloxyalkyldimethylchlorosilane. The acryloxyalkyldimethylchlorosilane, which may be used as an end-capper for AROP, has a purity of greater than about 99% and contains no detectable isomeric or hydrogenated impurities.

A method for converting organosilanes by reacting at least one silane (1) of the general formula
R.sub.aSiCl.sub.4-a(I)
with at least one further silane (2) of the general formula
R.sub.bSiCl.sub.4-b(II)
wherein silane (2) is identical or different from silane (1), optionally with additional use of silanes (3) which contain Si-bonded hydrogen and have the formula
R.sub.dH.sub.eSiCl.sub.4-d-e(III)
in the presence of aluminum salts, preferably aluminum halides, as catalysts and in the presence of cocatalysts, to obtain at least one silane (4) which differs from silanes (1) and (2) and has the general formula
R.sub.cSiCl.sub.4-c(IV).