Dynamic disulfide metathesis induced by ultrasound

Abstract

The reversible metathesis of disulfide bonds is generally induced by a combination of a reducing agent and base or by irradiation with ultraviolet light. Here we report that ultrasound irradiation is suitable for generating clean equilibrium mixtures of disulfides within one hour or one day, depending on the sonication source. Preliminary mechanistic investigations suggest that the solvent plays an active role in producing initiator radicals.