Hydrotrioxides found in the atmosphere, the impact of which needs to be examined.

Organic hydrotrioxides (ROOOH) are known to be strong oxidants used in organic synthesis. It has been speculated that they are formed in the atmosphere through the gas-phase reaction of organic peroxy-radicals (RO2) with hydroxyl radicals (OH). Researchers from the Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research in Leipzig, Germany, have reported the direct observation of ROOOH formation from several atmospherically relevant RO2 radicals. For the OH-initiated degradation of isoprene, global modelling predicts molar hydrotrioxide formation yields of up to 1%, which represents an annual ROOOH formation of about 10 million metric tons. The atmospheric lifetime of ROOOH is estimated to be minutes to hours. Hydrotrioxides represent a previously omitted substance class in the atmosphere, the impact of which needs to be examined.