Visible-Light-Mediated Alkylation of Thiophenols via Electron Donor-Acceptor Complexes Formed between Two Reactants.

A metal-free, photocatalyst-free, photochemical system was developed for the direct alkylation of thiophenols via electron donor-acceptor (EDA) complexes (KEDA = 145 M-1) between two reactants, N-hydroxyphthalimide esters as acceptors and thiophenol anions as donors, in the presence of a tertiary amine. The EDA complexes in the reaction system have a broad range of visible-light absorption (400-650 nm) and can trigger the reaction effectively under sunlight.