pH-Dependence of the Aqueous Phase Room Temperature Brønsted Acid-Catalyzed Chemoselective Oxidation of Sulfides with H₂O₂.

A pH-dependence of the Brønsted acid-catalyzed oxidation of sulfides to the corresponding sulfoxides with H₂O₂ is reported for the first time based on our systematic investigation of the catalytic performance of a series of Brønsted acids. For all of the Brønsted acids investigated, the catalytic performances do not depend on the catalyst loading (mol ratio of Brønsted acid to substrate), but rather depend on the pH value of the aqueous reaction solution. All of them can give more than 98% conversion and selectivity in their aqueous solution at pH 1.30, no matter how much the catalyst loading is and what the Brønsted acid is. This pH-dependence principle is a very novel perspective to understand the Brønsted-acid catalysis system compared with our common understanding of the subject.