Solvent- and metal-free selective oxidation of thiols to disulfides using I2/DMSO catalytic system

We describe herein a simple, fast and inexpensive protocol for the oxidative coupling of thiols employing a stoichiometric amount of DMSO and iodine as the catalyst. Various aromatic disulfides were obtained in good to excellent yields in short reaction times at room temperature, while aliphatic disulfides were achieved in good yields when the reactions were conducted under microwave irradiation.