2-Mercaptoarylthioazole production

A process for the production of 2-mercaptoarylthiazoles which comprises reacting

• a. at least one primary aryl amine having a replacable hydrogen on a carbon atom adjacent to the carbon atom to which the amino group is bonded selected from aniline, alkyl-substituted anilines, .alpha.- and .beta.-naphthyl amines, and alkyl-substituted .alpha.- and .beta.-naphthyl amines wherein the alkyl substituents contain from one to six carbon atoms per group and the primary aryl amine contains from six to 16 carbon atoms per molecule with
• b. sulfur and
• c. at least one nitrogen-containing compound having a formula selected from ##EQU4## and
• H.sub.2 N--C.tbd.N (II)
• wherein Y = O, S, or NH;
• and Z = OR, SR, NH.sub.2, NHR, and NR.sub.2 ;
• where R is a hydrocarbyl radical selected from alkyl, aryl, and cycloalkyl radicals having up to eight, inclusive, carbon atoms, and compounds selected from the group consisting of alkaline earth cyanamides, alkali metal cyanamides, dicyanodiamide, and ammonium thiocyanate which are convertible to compounds of Formulas I and II, under reaction conditions of a temperature in the range of 200.degree.-350.degree.C and a pressure up to 1,200 psig and in the presence of from 0.01 to 5 moles of nitrogen-containing compound per mole of primary aryl amine which produce 2-mercaptoarylthiazoles.