Improved synthesis of 2-(3H)Benzothiazolethiones under microwave irradiation

2-(3H)Benzothiazolethiones (2-mercaptobenzothiazole) are prepared by an improved method, which utilizes microwave-assisted cyclization of the corresponding ortho-haloanlines with potassium O-ethyl dithiocarbonate. By using microwave irradiation, the relative reactivity of 2-chloroanilines was greatly improved to the same level as that of 2-fluoroanilines and 2-bromoanilines.