Centrifugal process for the continuous manufacture of novel uncrosslinked polysilazanes

A process to manufacture a silazane or polysilazane comprising the steps of:

• (a) contacting a flowing stream of halosilane with a flowing stream of anhydrous, liquid ammonia in the chamber of an operating centrifugal device, where said centrifugal device is capable of inertially separating a product stream of aminosilane and silazane ammonolysis intermediates of slightly different densities and polarities from a stream of anhydrous, liquid ammonia-ammonium halide by-product, using a centrifugal force of sufficient magnitude to effect such separation;
• (b) allowing a dwell time in the centrifugal device sufficient to fully provide for the reaction of the halosilane reactant with the anhydrous, liquid ammonia to form polar, aminosilanes and silazanes that are soluble in the anhydrous liquid ammonia;
• (c) further allowing a sufficient dwell time in the centrifugal device to allow for the separation of these aminosilane and silazane intermediates from the anhydrous, liquid ammonia-ammonium halide by-product in a separate liquid phase;
• (d) further allowing a sufficient dwell time in the centrifugal device to provide for at least a partial condensation of the aminosilane and silazane intermediates to a degree of polymerization where the resulting, oligomeric or polymeric silazanes are less polar and denser than the ammonium halide-anhydrous liquid ammonia by-product solution and can remain separated from the by-product ammonium halide-anhydrous, liquid ammonia solution at ambient temperatures and pressures, and;
• (e) subsequently collecting the separate phases of (i) oligomeric silazane and polymeric silazane product, and (ii) the by-product solution of ammonium halide in anhydrous, liquid ammonia that exit the centrifugal device through separate exit ports.