Wettability-Driven Palladium Catalysis for Enhanced Dehydrogenative Coupling of Organosilanes

Abstract

Direct coupling of Si–H bonds has emerged as a promising strategy for designing chemically and biologically useful organosilicon compounds. Heterogeneous catalytic systems sufficiently active, selective, and durable for dehydrosilylation reactions under mild conditions have been lacking to date. Herein, we report that the hydrophobic characteristics of the underlying supports can be advantageously utilized to enhance the efficiency of palladium nanoparticles (Pd NPs) for the dehydrogenative coupling of organosilanes. As a result of this prominent surface wettability control, the modulated catalyst showed a significantly higher level of efficiency and durability characteristics toward the dehydrogenative condensation of organosilanes with water, alcohols, or amines in comparison to existing catalysts. In a broader context, this work illustrates a powerful approach to maximize the performance of supported metals through surface wettability modulation under catalytically relevant conditions.