Method of producing sulfonyl halides from sulfenyl halides

Claim 1

IN A PROCESS FOR THE OXIDATION OF A NONTERTIARY SATURATED HYDROCARBON SULFENYL HALIDE HAVING THE GENERAL FORMULA RSX WHEREIN R IS A NON-TERTIARY HYDROCARBON RADICAL AND X IS SELECTED FROM THE CLASS CONSISTING OF CHLORINE AND BROMINE, SAID SULFENYL HALIDE HAVING A PURITY OF AT LEAST 90 PERCENT BY WEIGHT, WITH A GAS CONTAINING FREE OXYGEN AND A CATALYTIC QUANTITY OF NO2, SAID QUANTITY BEING BETWEEN ABOUT 0.05 AND ABOUT 0.5 PART BY WEIGHT PER PART BY WEIGHT OF SAID OXYGEN, AT A TEMPERATURE BETWEEN ABOUT -20* C. AND ABOUT 30* C. UNDER SUBSTANTIALLY ANHYDROUS CONDITIONS, IN WHICH PROCESS AN INDUCTION PERIOD OCCURS BEFORE THE ONSET OF ACTIVE OXIDATION, THE IMPROVEMENT OF SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCING SAID INDUCTION PERIOD WHICH COMPRISES ADDING TO SAID SULFENYL HALIDE BETWEEN ABOUT 1/2 AND ABOUT 20 PERCENT BY WEIGHT THEREOF OF A PRIMER CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF A PARTIALLY OXIDIZED NON-TERTIARY SATURATED HYDROCARBON SULFENYL HALIDE CONTAINING BETWEEN ABOUT 2 AND ABOUT 50 PERCENT OF THE OXYGEN THEORETICALLY REQUIRED TO CONVERT THE ENTIRE SULFENYL HALIDE CONTENT OF SAID PRIMER TO THE CORRESPONDING SULFONYL HALIDE.