A metal-free and recyclable synthesis of benzothiazoles using thiourea as a sulfur surrogate

Abstract Using odorless thiourea as the S source, benzothiazoles and asymmetric disulfides could be obtained from thioformanilides through the tandem cyclization/nucleophilic addition/hydrolysis/nucleophilic substitution reaction. Furthermore, the obtained asymmetric disulfides could readily transfer to benzothiazoles after nitro-reduction and amide formation reaction. This metal-free and recyclable synthetic methodology offered a time-efficient, less expensive, and environmentally friendly alternative to multifunctional benzothiazoles.