1, 1, 1-Trifluoroacetone as an Efficient Catalyst for the Hydrogen Peroxide Promoted Selective Oxidation of Sulfides to Sulfoxides

Abstract

Organic sulfides are selectively oxidized to the corresponding sulfoxides in high yields and under very mild conditions using 35% hydrogen peroxide in CHCl₃ in the presence of catalytic amounts of 1, 1, 1-trifluoroacetone.

Notes

Ref. 2f, pp. 236–240.

Selective oxidation of sulfides using 2-hydroperoxyhexafluoro-2-propanol has been reported.¹⁰ Apart from some complexity in preparing the reagent, which demands hexafluoroacetone to be made to react with 90% aqueous hydrogen peroxide in CH₂Cl₂ at -60°C, the stoichiometric amount of this oxidant has to be used in order to obtain a good yield of sulfoxide without over-oxidation products.