Disulfides as efficient thiolating reagents enabling selective bis-sulfenylation of aryl dihalides under mild copper-catalyzed conditions

Selective bis-sulfenylation reactions of aryl dihalides have been achieved by copper-catalyzed C-S coupling reactions under mild conditions of refluxing EtOH (80 degrees C). Employment of disulfides as thiolating reagents enables the production of various bis(phenylthio) benzenes with excellent selectivity, and no products from mono C-S coupling are isolated.