Photocatalyst-Free Activation of Sulfamoyl Chlorides for Regioselective Sulfamoyl-Oximation of Alkenes via Hydrogen Atom Transfer (HAT) and Halogen-Atom Transfer (XAT) Relay Strategy

The use of readily available and diverse sulfamoyl chlorides for synthesizing sulfonamide compounds presents an intriguing, yet significantly underexplored strategy. Activating sulfamoyl chlorides via single-electron reduction poses challenges due to their high reduction potential. Alternatively, the SO2–Cl bond in sulfamoyl chlorides could be readily cleaved by XAT. However, the existing methodologies have been limited to either the use of photocatalyst or the monofunctionalization of activated alkenes. Here, we report a regioselective sulfamoyl-oximation of alkenes by involving the activation of sulfamoyl chlorides through a HAT and XAT relay strategy in a photocatalyst-free way. The key to this success lies in the dual roles of tert-butyl nitrite (TBN), which not only serves as the source of oximes but also acts as the HAT reagent to generate the crucial XAT reactive species. The exclusion of metal catalysts or photosensitizers for utilizing light energy renders this protocol versatile and universally applicable for synthesizing a broad range of structurally diverse oxime-containing alkyl sulfonamides.