The spread monolayer tension behavior of hexadecanol at 25-degrees-C was linked to the adsorption dynamics from sprinkled particles or from dispersions in saline. The dynamic tension was measured with the Langmuir trough (Wilhelmy plate) method, the pendant drop method, and the bubble method. The rate of adsorption was found to be proportional to the surface area of particles spinkled on the surface. Moreover, the size and concentration of dispersed particles close to the surface affected strongly the rate of tension drop for 1500 ppm dispersions. When the dispersed crystallites were melted, broken to smaller particles, and refrozen, the rate of adsorption increased drastically. The bubble method was used in the constant area mode and in the pulsating area mode at 1-80 cycles/min, at 25 and 37-degrees-C. The tension amplitude during pulsation increased with increasing frequency and decreased with decreasing particle size. The constant area data were compared to the predictions of a simple diffusion-controlled adsorption model with an effective diffusion length which represents the contribution of the particles as the source of molecules available for adsorption.