Hexachloroethane: a highly efficient reagent for the synthesis of chlorosilanes from hydrosilanes

A new and efficient method is disclosed for the transformation of hydrosilanes into chlorosilanes in excellent yields under mild conditions using hexachloroethane as the chlorinating agent and palladium(II) chloride as the catalyst. A new and efficient chlorination protocol is presented for the preparation of chlorosilanes from hydrosilanes. A variety of chlorinating agents in combination with palladium(II) chloride as the catalyst are examined. Among them, hexachloroethane is found to be the best choice, furnishing the desired product in good to quantitative yields under mild conditions. Various hydrosilanes are used as starting materials to explore the scope of this reaction.