Photocatalytic cleavage of trityl protected thiols and alcohols

We report the visible light photocatalytic cleavage of trityl thioethers or ethers under pH-neutral conditions. The method results in the formation of the respective symmetrical disulfides and alcohols in moderate to excellent yield. The protocol only requires the addition of a suitable photocatalyst and light rendering it orthogonal to several functionalities, including acid labile protective groups. The same conditions can be used to directly convert trityl-protected thiols into unsymmetrical disulfides or selenosulfides, and to cleave trityl resins in solid phase organic synthesis.