A stirred suspension of 2-phenyl-4-hydroxypyrimidine (2.50 g, 14.5 mmol) was formed by adding it with phosphorous trichloride (17 mL) to a 100 mL three-necked round-bottomed flask equipped with a magnetic stirrer and reflux condenser. The mixture was heated and refluxed for 3 hours until a clarified solution was formed. Upon completion of the reaction, the solution was concentrated under reduced pressure. The concentrated residue was carefully poured into ice (40 g). The resulting precipitate was filtered, washed with water and dried under vacuum to give 4-chloro-2-phenylpyrimidine (2.10 g, 11.0 mmol, 76% yield) as a white solid. Mass spectral analysis showed M + 1 (measured) = 191.0; retention time Rt = 4.22.
