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Description
We present the results of a study of 14 molecular outflows associated with high-mass star formation. We used the IRAM30m telescope to characterize the outflow emission in the SiO(2-1), SiO(5-4) and HCO^+^(1-0) lines. We detect outflows in all the 14 high-mass star-forming regions in both, the SiO and HCO^+^ lines. Six of the fourteen outflows show bipolarity. The physical parameters derived for these outflows are consistent with outflows powered by massive young stellar objects with luminosities in the range 10^3^-10^4^L_{sun}_. We found a decrease of the SiO abundance (from 10^-8^ to 10^-9^) as the object evolves in time, while there are hints of a possible increase of the HCO^+^ outflow energetics with time. These results suggest a scenario in which SiO is largely enhanced in the first evolutionary stages, probably due to strong shocks produced by the protostellar jet. As the object evolves, the power of the jet would decrease and so does the SiO abundance. During this process, however, the material surrounding the protostar would have been swept up by the jet, and the outflow activity, traced by entrained molecular material (HCO^+^), would increase with time.
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