The sorption of strong basic ammonia, acidic carbon diol;ide, and apolar propane in different commercial adsorbents: activated alumina, charcoal, and silica gel porous particles and 4A, 5A, and 13X zeolite pellets has been investigated using the frequency response (FR) method. Despite differences in the sorption and diffusion processes of the sorbates in 4A, 5A, and 13X zeolite crystals, in the pelletized samples, intercrystalline diffusion was found to be the rate-controlling process with macropore diffusivities being the same within I order of magnitude for NH3 or CO2. The mass transport rates of the apolar propane seemed to be more sensitive to differences in the meso- and macropore size distributions of the zeolitic pellets. The micropore adsorption capacity played a significant role in the uptakes controlled by macropore diffusion. For ammonia and carbon dioxide, sorption proved to be the rate-determining process inside the zeolite crystals, but for propane, intracrystalline diffusion was rate controlling. Micropore diffusivities were determined in both 5A crystals and pellets, and good agreement was obtained. Carbon dioxide intercrystalline diffusivities were determined from the pellet responses, and the same rates were obtained for all three zeolite pellets. Micropore diffusion was 1 order of magnitude faster in 5A (Ca-form) compared with zeolites 4A and 13X (Na-form), which indicates the strong influence of cations. The other adsorbents show more varied sorption behaviors. Interesting findings are the bimodal intracrystalline diffusion rate spectra of ammonia, carbon dioxide, and propane in charcoal. An outstanding advantage of the FR method is its ability to study diffusion in anisotropic systems. The usefulness of the FR technique for dynamical characterization of various adsorbents has been demonstrated.