10-trifluoromethyl analogues of important antimalarials such as artemether and artesunate, the substitution reaction of the 10-trifluoromethyl hemiketal 6 and bromide 4 derived from artemisinin was investigated. While 6 appeared to be unreactive under various conditions, bromide 4 could easily undergo substitution with methanol under electrophilic assistance or noncatalyzed conditions. Optimization of the