Exercise Physiology: Theory and Application to Fitness and Performance 9th Edition by Scott Powers, Edward Howley

Exercise 5

Discuss those factors that influence the rate of diffusion across the blood-gas interface in the lung.

Step 1 of 2

Diffusion of gasses across the tissues follow Fick’s law, which states that the rate of gas transfer (V gas) is proportional to the tissue area, the diffusion coefficient of the gas, and the difference in the partial pressure of the gas on the two side of the tissue, and is inversely proportional to the thickness of the tissue.

It is represented as

Where V = volume of gas that diffuses across a given tissue

A is the area of the tissue

T is the thickness

D is the diffusion coefficient of the gas

P₁ and P₂ are partial pressures between the two sides of the tissue