In certain regimes of atmospheric corrosion, the corrosion rate is limited not by electrochemical reactions but by the rate of mass transfer of pollutants. In these cases, amass transfer model that accounts for the transport of pollutants, such as a marine salt aerosol, provides a
theoretical and predictive framework for assessing corrosivity severity. Such a model of the transport of a marine aerosol fairly near the ground and well within the planetary boundary layer was developed. The
predicted aerosol concentration as a function of distance for 1500 m from a steady source was consistent with published data on steel corrosion and salinity rates near an ocean. Implications from the model regarding objects that are exposed to aerosol-containing wind include: (i) increasing wind speed increases the aerosol deposition rate and therefore the corrosion rate, (ii) objects that are in the lee of prevailing winds from an aerosol source will corrode faster than objects on the windward side of an aerosol source, and (iii) smaller objects can be expected to corrode faster because of a greater capture efficiency of salt aerosols. Keywords: aerosol transport; atmospheric corrosivity; aerosol deposition