Studies on model oligosulfides to understand polysulfide polymers

1-bromo- 1-phenylethane was reacted with aqueous sodium disulfide or sodium tetrasulfide to form the 1-phenylethyl polysulfides of sulfur rank 2 or 4 respectively. The distribution of the 1-phenylethyl polysulfides thus formed was studied using 1H NMR and GC-MS analysis. Apart from 1-phenylethyl disulfide and 1-phenylethyl tetrasulfide being produced in large amounts when aqueous sodium disulfide and sodium tetrasulfide were used respectively, the formation of 1-phenylethyl monosulfide in the former case and both mono and disulfide in the latter case, in minor amounts, is also observed. Also, it was found that the undetection of the molecular ion peaks of 1-phenylethyl polysulfides having rank above 2 is due to their thermal decomposition to elemental sulfur, 1-phenylethyl mono and disulfide, under the heating conditions employed for GC-MS analysis