Recent Advances in Photochemical Reactions Involving Elemental Sulfur (S8)

doi:10.6023/cjoc202512003

Abstract

As elemental sulfur (S₈) is a large-scale industrial byproduct, its conversion into value-added sulfur-containing compounds is of significant importance. Recent advances in photochemical reactions involving S₈ are summarized, categorized by its distinct roles: (1) as a photocatalyst for degrading organic pollutants; (2) as a substrate in light-driven synthesis of sulfur-containing compounds (e.g., thioesters/thioamides) from simple precursors; and (3) as a monomer in photoinduced room-temperature inverse vulcanization, enabling the preparation of sulfur-rich polymers under mild conditions with expanded crosslinker scope.

Key words: elemental sulfur (S₈), photochemistry, photocatalyst, C—S bond formation, inverse vulcanization

Cite this article

Wenxin Su, Hao Cui, Xiao Zhang. Recent Advances in Photochemical Reactions Involving Elemental Sulfur (S₈)[J]. Chinese Journal of Organic Chemistry, 2026, 46(4): 1360-1375.

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Fig. & Tab. 18

Figure 1. Band structure diagrams of α-S8 and TiO2

Scheme 1. α-S8 for photocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine B

Scheme 2. Visible-light-induced, elemental sulfur (S8)-participated four-component reaction for the synthesis of thiocyanates

Scheme 3. Visible-light-driven, elemental sulfur (S8)-participated multicomponent reaction for the synthesis of alkyl thiophosphates

Scheme 4. Visible-light-induced, elemental sulfur (S8)-participated three-component reaction for the synthesis of 2-aminonaphthothia- zoles

Scheme 5. Visible-light-induced cascade for the synthesis of 3-substituted thiochromones

Scheme 6. Photocatalytic oxidative transformations by K-PHI/S8 system

Scheme 7. Carbon nitride-photocatalyzed synthesis of thioamides via the Kindler reaction

Scheme 8. Synthesis of thioamides by GO—N=Fe photocatalyst

Scheme 9. Visible-light-mediated three-component denitrative cross-coupling reaction for the synthesis of thiophosphates

Scheme 10. Photocatalytic benzylic C—H disulfidation of toluene derivatives by K-PHI/S8 system

Scheme 11. Acridine-photocatalyzed decarboxylative synthesis of thiols

Scheme 12. Photoinduced elemental sulfur (S8)-participated three-component thioesterification reaction

Scheme 13. Photocatalyzed hydrogen atom transfer strategy for the synthesis of thioesters from aldehydes, alkenes or alkynes and elemental sulfur (S8)

Scheme 14. Photocatalyzed hydrogen atom transfer strategy for the synthesis of thioesters from primary alcohols, elemental sulfur (S8), and alkenes

Scheme 15. Photoinduced inverse vulcanization and the range of crosslinkers/co-monomers

Scheme 16. Synthesis of photo-crosslinkable sulfur-containing polymer

Figure 2. Representative scope of crosslinking agents in inverse vulcanization polymerization under varied reaction conditions

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单质硫(S₈)参与的光化学反应研究进展

Recent Advances in Photochemical Reactions Involving Elemental Sulfur (S₈)

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单质硫(S8)参与的光化学反应研究进展