Modeling the deposition of pollutants onto surfaces requires the inclu
sion of two separate components: (1) the transport of the pollutant to
the surface and (2) the subsequent uptake of the pollutant onto the s
urface. The relationship of these two components to the deposition vel
ocity can be written in the form of two resistances corresponding to t
he two components (i.e., the boundary layer resistance and the surface
uptake resistance). In order to calculate the surface uptake resistan
ce, the mass accommodation (or ''sticking'') coefficient is required.
We present an experimental method for determining accurately the mass
accommodation coefficient and report the results of measurements on se
veral common indoor surfaces. For ozone deposition onto glass, latex p
aint, and vinyl and paper wallpaper, the mass accommodation coefficien
ts were in the range of 10(-5)-10(-7). It Was found that for the surfa
ces tested, the deposition was governed by one of three conditions, de
pending on the airflow conditions: (1) surface uptake is rate limiting
, (2) boundary layer transport is rate limiting, or (3) both boundary
layer transport and surface uptake are important.