Dimethyl sulfide ditriflate

More recently, this method has been extended to preparation of a variety of disulfonium dications from both acyclic and cyclic bis-sulfides, including very labile dications not observed when other methods were used.78 Thus, simple acyclic S-S dications were prepared by an intermolecular reaction of a monosulfide, a monosulfoxide and triflic anhydride.79 In the first step, reaction of triflic anhydride with dimethylsulfoxide generates a highly electrophilic80 complex 50 (dimethyl sulfide ditriflate).81 The latter reacts with dimethyl sulfide to give labile tetramethyldisulfonium dication 51 identified by NMR spectroscopy.79 In a similar manner, bis-(tetramethylene)disulfonium dication 52 is obtained from tetrahydrothiophene and its S-oxide (Scheme 17). 

The less stable dimethyl sulfide ditriflate, obtained from Tf20 and DMSO, has been used to oxidize alcohols (eq 36). ... 

---