Silicon, -bonding hydrides

A further method for the synthesis of the title compounds with only hydrogen as byproduct is the base-catalyzed dehydrogenative coupling (index D) of ammonia and tris(hydridosilylethyl)boranes, B[C2H4Si(R)H2]3 (R = H, CH3). Initially, the strong base, e.g. n-butyl lithium, deprotonates ammonia. The highly nucleophilic amide replaces a silicon-bonded hydride to form a silylamine and lithium hydride, which then deprotonates ammonia, resuming the catalytic cycle. Under the conditions used, silylamines are not stable and by elimination of ammonia, polysilazane frameworks form. In addition, compounds B[C2l-L Si(R)H2]3 can be obtained from vinylsilanes, H2C=CHSi(R)H2 (R - H, CH3), and borane dimethylsulfide. 

SCHEME 18.30 Proposed mechanism of the n-BuLi catalyzed dehydrocoupling of tris(hydridosilyl-ethylene)boranes and ammonia. (1) deprotonation with formation of an amide, (2) substitution of silicon-bonded hydride with amide, (3) polymerization through condensation. 

It was observed that ammonolysis of B(C2H,Si(R)H2)3 (Scheme 2, route A) requires basic catalysts such as n-butyl lithium. The reaction is performed in analogy to the potassium hydride-catalyzed cross-linking of cyclic silazanes described by Seyferth et al. [8]. Most probably, n-BuLi initially deprotonates the weak nucleophile ammonia with the formation of lithiiun amide and evaporation of n-butane. The stronger nucleophilic amide then replaces a silicon-bonded hydride, which subsequently deprotonates ammonia, leading to the evolution of molecular hydrogen. The silylamines that arise are not stable under the reaction conditions applied (refluxing solvent), and by fast condensation of ammonia the polymeric precursors form [6]. 

The oxidative addition of silanes (with silicon-hydrogen bonds) to coordinatively unsaturated metal complexes is one of the most elegant methods for the formation of metal-silicon bonds. Under this heading normally reactions are considered which yield stable silyl metal hydrides. However, in some cases the oxidative addition is accompanied by a subsequent reductive elimination of, e.g., hydrogen, and only the products of the elimination step can be isolated. Such reactions are considered in this section as well. 

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