Methyltrichlorosilane, also known as trichloromethylsilane, is an organosilicon

Organosilicon

Organosilicon compounds are organic compounds containing carbon silicon bonds. Organosilicon chemistry is the corresponding science exploring their properties and reactivity.Like carbon, the organically bound silicon is tetravalent and tetrahedral...

 compound with the formula CH₃SiCl₃. At room temperature, it is a colorless liquid with a sharp odor similar to that of hydrochloric acid

Hydrochloric acid

Hydrochloric acid is a solution of hydrogen chloride in water, that is a highly corrosive, strong mineral acid with many industrial uses. It is found naturally in gastric acid....

. As methyltrichlorosilane is a reactive compound, it is mainly used a precursor for forming various cross-linked siloxane polymers.
Methyltrichlorosilane results from the “direct reaction” of chloromethane

Chloromethane

Chloromethane, also called methyl chloride, R-40 or HCC 40, is a chemical compound of the group of organic compounds called haloalkanes. It was once widely used as a refrigerant. It is a colorless extremely flammable gas with a minorly sweet odor, which is, however, detected at possibly toxic levels...

 with elemental silicon

Silicon

Silicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. A tetravalent metalloid, it is less reactive than its chemical analog carbon, the nonmetal directly above it in the periodic table, but more reactive than germanium, the metalloid directly below it in the table...

 in the presence of a copper catalyst, usually at a temperature of at least 250 °C.

3 CH₃Cl + Si → CH₃SiCl₃ + C₂H₄ + H₂

While this reaction is currently the standard in industrial silicone production and is nearly identical to the first direct synthesis of methyltrichlorosilane, the overall process is inefficient with respect to methyltrichlorosilane.