Abstract Carbon tetrachloride, 1, 1, 1-trichloroethane, and 1, 1, 1, 3-tetrachloroalkanes were selectively reduced by silicon hydrides to give chloroform, 1, 1-dichloroethane, and 1, 1, 3- trichloroalkanes, respectively, in high yields in the presence of catalytic amounts of phosphine complexes of ruthenium (II) such as RuCl 2 (PPh 3) 3, RuHCl (PPh 3) 3, RuH 2 (PPH 3) 4, and RuH (SiMe 2 Cl)(PPh 3) 3. Reactivities of a wide variety of silicon hydrides ...
