Rate Acceleration of Nucleophilic Substitution of 2-Chloro-4,6-dimethoxypyrimidine by Sulfinate Catalysis

The use of sulfinates greatly enhances the rate of substitution in the reaction of 2-chloro-4,6-dimethoxypyrimidine with alkoxy or aryloxy nucleophiles. Pyrimidinyloxy derivatives as intermediates for potent herbicides have been prepared in good yields from the readily available 2-chloro-4,6-dimethoxypyrimidine.