Oxidative Dehydrogenative Coupling of Thiols with Alkanes for the Synthesis of Sulfoxides

An oxidative dehydrogenative coupling of thiols with alkanes via direct C(sp³)-H bond functionalization to form a new C-S bond and S═O double bond was developed. The present reaction features the use of readily available reagents and high step- and atom-efficiency, thus providing an efficient access to sulfoxides. A possible mechanism is proposed.