Solutions to the equation of absorption with first-order chemical reaction in spherical polar coordinates are presented in graphical form as plots of dimensionless mass absorbed against dimensionless time, with dimensionless rate constant, gas volume, and gas-side mass-transfer coefficient as parameters. An asymptotic solution which combines the effects of finite gas volume and gas-side mass-transfer resistance is derived and its range of validity assessed; an extension to the case of infinite reaction rate is also proposed. The results are applied to the design of venturi scrubbers and compared with the experimental data of Ravindram and Pyla. Serious discrepancies are apparent, and possible reasons for these are discussed.