Diazo compounds are hazardous to handle in batch operations due to their toxicity and explosive decomposition to nitrogen gas, often causing exothermic runaway reactions. To address these challenges, a photoflow sulfur alkylation of sulfenamides using diazo compounds was developed, enabling rapid (7.5 min) and safe access to sulfilimines in 76-95% yields with broad functional group tolerance (22 molecules). The method is robust, scalable, and applicable to gram-scale synthesis and late-stage drug modification.
Purwa et al. (2026) studied this question.