October 27, 2025 (Zhejiang) – In the vast field of organic chemistry, silicon, as a "special member" with low appearance frequency, is often analogized to two common elements, carbon and hydrogen, by researchers to help chemistry enthusiasts quickly grasp its core characteristics. This cognitive method of "learning new things through familiar ones" makes the complex reaction mechanisms of organosilicon intuitive and understandable. Silicon's uniqueness is first reflected in its "oxygen-philic, fluorine-philic, and chlorine-philic" properties. Its strong reducibility enables it to form stable covalent bonds with these highly electronegative atoms, a process analogous to the abstraction of protons by bases. In classic organic reactions such as carbonyl condensation and the Peterson reaction, silicon can activate substrates or be abstracted by bases like protons to promote reactions. Moreover, the "hyperconjugation effect" of C-Si bonds is even stronger than that of C-H bonds, which can stabilize carbocations more efficiently and provide a new path for controlling the selectivity of electrophilic reactions. Compared with carbon in the same main group, silicon's reaction mechanisms show significant differences. Although organosilicon halides can undergo nucleophilic substitution like alkyl halides, due to silicon's large atomic size, small steric hindrance, and empty d orbitals, they can react rapidly through an addition-elimination mechanism, forming a unique "SN2-like" process, which is in sharp contrast to the reaction paths of carbon-based compounds. This analogical cognition not only simplifies the learning difficulty of organosilicon chemistry but also reveals silicon's unique value in organic synthesis. With the development of materials science, these properties of organosilicon are being widely applied in fields such as new material development and drug synthesis, providing basic support for innovation in related industries.

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