α-Fluorination of β-ketosulfones by Selectfluor™ F-TEDA-BF4

Attempted fluorination of β-ketosulfides using Selectfluor™ resulted only in the isolation of the corresponding diaryl disulfides, presumed to arise by decomposition of an unstable fluorinated intermediate. However, fluorination of β-ketosulfones using Selectfluor™ under anhydrous conditions does allow the isolation of both mono-and difluorinated products in moderate to good yields.