NOVELTY - Hydrogen is generated by combining water and a catalyst to obtain a water-catalyst mixture; and combining water-catalyst mixture with a silicon-containing compound.    USE - A method for generating hydrogen (claimed).    ADVANTAGE - The method has an enhanced gravimetric efficiency of greater than or equal to least 4 (preferably 14)%, has a hydrogen yield that is 2-3 times higher than using other fuel cell technologies, avoids formation of carbon dioxide which is a harmful green house gas, and forms non-hazardous and non-valuable precipitate which does not need to be recovered as compared to sodium borohydride, lithium hydride or other by-products formed using other process.    DETAILED DESCRIPTION - Hydrogen is generated by combining water and a catalyst to obtain a water-catalyst mixture; and combining water-catalyst mixture with a silicon-containing compound to generate hydrogen on a needed basis. The silicon-containing compound is from hexasilane, pentasilane, cyclopentasilane, substituted cyclopentasilane, cyclohexasilane, substituted cyclohexasilane, phenylsilane having silane group(s), disilylbenzene, trisilylbenzene, hexasilylbenzene, a powdered siloxene, a layered polysilane, a silane oligomer with at least three repeating groups, a short chain hydrocarbon with terminal silane group(s), disilabutane, disilapropane, a metal silicide, pyrolized ash of rice husks, and/or pyrolized ash of rice straw. The catalyst comprises mixture of a hydroxide and an organic amine. The hydroxide is potassium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide, calcium oxide and/or calcium hydroxide. INDEPENDENT CLAIMS are included for:    (1) a device for generating hydrogen on a needed basis in a controlled manner comprising mixing chamber for mixing silicon-containing compound from an organosilane, a silicide, a powdered siloxene and a layered polysilane, water, and optionally a catalyst; a reaction chamber comprising a hydrogen outlet; and a hydrogen outlet comprising a hydrogen permeable membrane;    (2) a hydrogen fuel cell comprising the device for generating hydrogen;    (3) an internal combustion engine comprising a hydrogen source comprising the device for generating hydrogen;    (4) an exhaust gas treatment system for an internal combustion engine;    (5) a composition for generating hydrogen on a needed basis in a controlled manner comprising water; siloxene; and a propylamine catalyst (0.1-5 mass% of siloxene) where water and siloxene has a mass ratio of 1-10:1; and    (6) a composition for generating hydrogen on a needed basis in a controlled manner comprising water; a silicon-containing compound from phenylsilane or 1,4-disilabutane; and an octylamine catalyst (0.5-10 mass% silicon containing compound) where water and silicon-containing compound has a mass ratio of 4-8:1.