Hydroperoxymethyl thioformate (HPMTF) is an important compound in the atmosphere. However, its atmospheric sinks are incompletely unknown. Here, we study the reactions of HPMTF + SO3 and HPMTF + SO3 + H2O using high-level quantum chemical methods and dual-level strategy for kinetics calculations. Our present findings suggest that water has a remarkably catalytic role in HPMTF + SO3 + H2O → CHOSCH2OOS(H)O3 + H2O, as the enthalpy of activation at 0 K for HPMTF + SO3 is significantly decreased by 29.17 kcal/mol due to the introduction of H2O. The present results also uncover that the calculated rate constant of HOOCH2SCHO ⋯ SO3 + H2O is increased by about 7.7 to 6.1 at 280–350 K due to the effects of vibrational anharmonicity. We also find that the HPMTF + SO3 + H2O reaction can compete well with the HPMTF + OH reaction, significantly contributing to the sink of HPMTF during the nighttime.
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