An apparatus to determine the solubility and rate of absorption of CO2 from pressure changes over time was built and validated against water. A high correlation (r(2) > 0.99) between the measured solubility and theoretical solubility was found. The solubility determinations using the manometric method were more accurate than using a CO2 electrode. The solubility of CO2 increased linearly with the partial pressure of CO2, and a quadratic response was observed for the gas volume/product volume (g/p) ratio. The temperature dependency of the solubility is according to the temperature dependency of Henry's constant. The rate of absorption is primarily affected by the %-level of CO2 in the atmosphere, and the effective diffusion constant is primarily affected by the %-level of CO2 and the g/p-ratio. The time to reach 50% solubility was about 3 It and equilibrium was reached after 48 h. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.