An unprecedented electrochemical trifluoromethylation/SO2 insertion/cyclization process has been achieved in an undivided cell in an atom-economic fashion. The protocol relies on tandem cyclization of N-cyanamide alkenes by using Langlois' reagent as a source of both CF3 and SO2 under direct anodically oxidative conditions, in which two C-C bonds, two C-X bonds (N-S and S-C), and two rings were formed in a single operation. This transformation enabled efficient construction of various trifluoromethylated cyclic N-sulfonylimines from readily accessible materials.
Keywords: alkenes; cyclization; electrochemistry; synthetic methods; trifluoromethylation.
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