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Symbols and Abbreviations

For symbols of chemical elements, see Sec. 6; for abbreviations applying to metric weights
and measures and SI units, Sec. 1; SI unit prefixes are listed on p. 1-19.
Pairs of parentheses, brackets, etc., are frequently used in this work to indicate correspond-
ing values. For example, the statement that ‘‘the cost per kW of a 30,000-kW plant is $86; of a
15,000-kW plant, $98; and of an 8,000-kW plant, $112,’’ is condensed as follows: The cost
per kW of a 30,000 (15,000) [8,000]-kW plant is $86 (98) [112].
In the citation of references readers should always attempt to consult the latest edition of
referenced publications.
A or Å Angstrom unit ⫽ 10⫺ 10 m; 3.937 ⫻ 10⫺ 11 in ANSI American National Standards Institute
A mass number ⫽ N ⫹ Z; ampere antilog antilogarithm of
AA arithmetical average API Am. Petroleum Inst.
AAA Am. Automobile Assoc. approx approximately
AAMA American Automobile Manufacturers’ Assoc. APWA Am. Public Works Assoc.
AAR Assoc. of Am. Railroads AREA Am. Railroad Eng. Assoc.
AAS Am. Astronautical Soc. ARI Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Inst.
ABAI Am. Boiler & Affiliated Industries ARS Am. Rocket Soc.
abs absolute ASCE Am. Soc. of Civil Engineers
a.c. aerodynamic center ASHRAE Am. Soc. of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning
a-c, ac alternating current Engineers
ACI Am. Concrete Inst. ASLE Am. Soc. of Lubricating Engineers
ACM Assoc. for Computing Machinery ASM Am. Soc. of Metals
ACRMA Air Conditioning and Refrigerating Manufacturers Assoc. ASME Am. Soc. of Mechanical Engineers
ACS Am. Chemical Soc. ASST Am. Soc. of Steel Treating
ACSR aluminum cable steel-reinforced ASTM Am. Soc. for Testing and Materials
ACV air cushion vehicle ASTME Am. Soc. of Tool & Manufacturing Engineers
A.D. anno Domini (in the year of our Lord) atm atmosphere
AEC Atomic Energy Commission (U.S.) Auto. Ind. Automotive Industries (New York)
a-f, af audio frequency avdp avoirdupois
AFBMA Anti-friction Bearings Manufacturers’ Assoc. avg, ave average
AFS Am. Foundrymen’s Soc. AWG Am. Wire Gage
AGA Am. Gas Assoc. AWPA Am. Wood Preservation Assoc.
AGMA Am. Gear Manufacturers’ Assoc. AWS American Welding Soc.
ahp air horsepower AWWA American Water Works Assoc.
AlChE Am. Inst. of Chemical Engineers b barns
AIEE Am. Inst. of Electrical Engineers (see IEEE) bar barometer
AIME Am. Inst. of Mining Engineers B&S Brown & Sharp (gage); Beams and Stringers
AIP Am. Inst. of Physics bbl barrels
AISC American Institute of Steel Construction, Inc. B.C. before Christ
AISE Am. Iron & Steel Engineers B.C.C. body centered cubic
AISI Am. Iron and Steel Inst. Bé Baumé (degrees)
a.m. ante meridiem (before noon) B.G. Birmingham gage (hoop and sheet)
a-m, am amplitude modulation bgd billions of gallons per day
Am. Mach. Am. Machinist (New York) BHN Brinnell Hardness Number
AMA Acoustical Materials Assoc. bhp brake horsepower
AMCA Air Moving & Conditioning Assoc., Inc. BLC boundary layer control
amu atomic mass unit B.M. board measure; bench mark
AN ammonium nitrate (explosive); Army-Navy Specification bmep brake mean effective pressure
AN-FO ammonium nitrate-fuel oil (explosive) B of M, Bureau of Mines
ANC Army-Navy Civil Aeronautics Committee BuMines
ANS Am. Nuclear Soc. BOD biochemical oxygen demand

xix
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xx SYMBOLS AND ABBREVIATIONS

bp boiling point d-c, dc direct current

Bq bequerel def definition
bsfc brake specific fuel consumption deg degrees
BSI British Standards Inst. diam. (dia) diameter
Btu British thermal units DO dissolved oxygen
Btuh, Btu/h Btu per hr D2O deuterium (heavy water)
bu bushels d.p. double pole
Bull. Bulletin DP Diametral pitch
Buweaps Bureau of Weapons, U.S. Navy DPH diamond pyramid hardness
BWG Birmingham wire gage DST daylight saving time
c velocity of light d 2 tons breaking strength, d ⫽ chain wire diam, in.
°C degrees Celsius (centigrade) DX direct expansion
C coulomb e base of Napierian logarithmic system (⫽ 2.7182 ⫹)
CAB Civil Aeronautics Board EAP equivalent air pressure
CAGI Compressed Air & Gas Inst. EDR equivalent direct radiation
cal calories EEI Edison Electric Inst.
C-B-R chemical, biological & radiological (filters) eff efficiency
CBS Columbia Broadcasting System e.g. exempli gratia (for example)
cc, cm3 cubic centimeters ehp effective horsepower
CCR critical compression ratio EHV extra high voltage
c to c center to center El. Wld. Electrical World (New York)
cd candela elec electric
c.f. centrifugal force elong elongation
cf. confer (compare) emf electromotive force
cfh, ft3/ h cubic feet per hour Engg. Engineering (London)
cfm, ft3/min cubic feet per minute Engr. The Engineer (London)
C.F.R. Cooperative Fuel Research ENT emergency negative thrust
cfs, ft3/s cubic feet per second EP extreme pressure (lubricant)
cg center of gravity ERDA Energy Research & Development Administration (successor
cgs centimeter-gram-second to AEC; see also NRC)
Chm. Eng. Chemical Eng’g (New York) Eq. equation
chu centrigrade heat unit est estimated
C.I. cast iron etc. et cetera (and so forth)
cir circular et seq. et sequens (and the following)
cir mil circular mils eV electron volts
cm centimeters evap evaporation
CME Chartered Mech. Engr. (IMechE) exp exponential function of
C.N. cetane number exsec exterior secant of
coef coefficient ext external
COESA U.S. Committee on Extension to the Standard Atmosphere °F degrees Fahrenheit
col column F farad
colog cologarithm of FAA Federal Aviation Agency
const constant F.C. fixed carbon, %
cos cosine of FCC Federal Communications Commission; Federal Constructive
cos⫺ 1 angle whose cosine is, inverse cosine of Council
cosh hyperbolic cosine of F.C.C. face-centered-cubic (alloys)
cosh⫺ 1 inverse hyperbolic cosine of ff. following (pages)
cot cotangent of fhp friction horsepower
cot⫺ 1 angle whose cotangent is (see cos⫺ 1) Fig. figure
coth hyperbolic cotangent of F.I.T. Federal income tax
coth⫺ 1 inverse hyperbolic cotangent of f-m, fm frequency modulation
covers coversed sine of F.O.B. free on board (cars)
c.p. circular pitch; center of pressure FP fore perpendicular
cp candle power FPC Federal Power Commission
cp coef of performance fpm, ft/min feet per minute
CP chemically pure fps foot-pound-second system
CPH close packed hexagonal ft/s feet per second
cpm, cycles per minute F.S. Federal Specifications
cycles/min FSB Federal Specifications Board
cps, cycles/s cycles per second fsp fiber saturation point
CSA Canadian Standards Assoc. ft feet
csc cosecant of fc foot candles
csc⫺ 1 angle whose cosecant is (see cos⫺ 1) fL foot lamberts
csch hyperbolic cosecant of ft ⭈ lb foot-pounds
csch⫺ 1 inverse hyperbolic cosecant of g acceleration due to gravity
cu cubic g grams
cyl cylinder gal gallons
db, dB decibel gc gigacycles per sec
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SYMBOLS AND ABBREVIATIONS xxi

GCA ground-controlled approach J&P joists and planks

g ⭈ cal gram-calories Jour. Journal
gd Gudermannian of JP jet propulsion fuel
G.E. General Electric Co. k isentropic exponent; conductivity
GEM ground effect machine K degrees Kelvin (Celsius abs)
GFI gullet feed index K Knudsen number
G.M. General Motors Co. kB kilo Btu (1000 Btu)
GMT Greenwich Mean Time kc kilocycles
GNP gross national product kcps kilocycles per sec
gpcd gallons per capita day kg kilograms
gpd gallons per day; grams per denier kg ⭈ cal kilogram-calories
gpm, gal/min gallons per minute kg ⭈ m kilogram-meters
gps, gal/s gallons per second kip 1000 lb or 1 kilo-pound
gpt grams per tex kips thousands of pounds
H henry km kilometers
h Planck’s constant ⫽ 6.624 ⫻ 10⫺ 27 erg-sec kmc kilomegacycles per sec
ប Planck’s constant, ប ⫽ h/2␲ kmcps kilomegacycles per sec
HEPA high efficiency particulate matter kpsi thousands of pounds per sq in
h-f, hf high frequency ksi one kip per sq in, 1000 psi (lb/in2)
hhv high heat value kts knots
horiz horizontal kVA kilovolt-amperes
hp horsepower kW kilowatts
h-p high-pressure kWh kilowatt-hours
HPAC Heating, Piping, & Air Conditioning (Chicago) L lamberts
hp ⭈ hr horsepower-hour l, L litres
hr, h hours £ Laplace operational symbol
HSS high speed steel lb pounds
H.T. heat-treated L.B.P. length between perpendiculars
HTHW high temperature hot water lhv low heat value
Hz hertz ⫽ 1 cycle/s (cps) lim limit
IACS International Annealed Copper Standard lin linear
IAeS Institute of Aerospace Sciences ln Napierian logarithm of
ibid. ibidem (in the same place) loc. cit. loco citato (place already cited)
ICAO International Civil Aviation Organization log common logarithm of
ICC Interstate Commerce Commission LOX liquid oxygen explosive
ICE Inst. of Civil Engineers l-p, lp low pressure
ICI International Commission on Illumination LPG liquified petroleum gas
I.C.T. International Critical Tables lpw, lm/ W lumens per watt
I.D., ID inside diameter lx lux
i.e. id est (that is) L.W.L. load water line
IEC International Electrotechnical Commission lm lumen
IEEE Inst. of Electrical & Electronics Engineers (successor to m metres
AIEE, q.v.) M thousand; Mach number; moisture, %
IES Illuminating Engineering Soc. mA milliamperes
i-f, if intermediate frequency Machy. Machinery (New York)
IGT Inst. of Gas Technology max maximum
ihp indicated horsepower MBh thousands of Btu per hr
IMechE Inst. of Mechanical Engineers mc megacycles per sec
imep indicated mean effective pressure m.c. moisture content
Imp Imperial Mcf thousand cubic feet
in., in inches mcps megacycles per sec
in. ⭈ lb, inch-pounds Mech. Eng. Mechanical Eng’g (ASME)
in ⭈ lb mep mean effective pressure
INA Inst. of Naval Architects METO maximum, except during take-off
Ind. & Eng. Industrial & Eng’g Chemistry (Easton, PA) me V million electron volts
Chem. MF maintenance factor
int internal mhc mean horizontal candles
i-p, ip intermediate pressure mi mile
ipm, in/min inches per minute MIL-STD U.S. Military Standard
ipr inches per revolution min minutes; minimum
IPS iron pipe size mip mean indicated pressure
IRE Inst. of Radio Engineers (see IEEE) MKS meter-kilogram-second system
IRS Internal Revenue Service MKSA meter-kilogram-second-ampere system
ISO International Organization for Standardization mL millilamberts
isoth isothermal ml, mL millilitre ⫽ 1.000027 cm3
ISTM International Soc. for Testing Materials mlhc mean lower hemispherical candles
IUPAC International Union of Pure & Applied Chemistry mm millimetres
J joule mm-free mineral matter free
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xxii SYMBOLS AND ABBREVIATIONS

mmf magnetomotive force psi, lb/in2 lb per sq in

mol mole psia lb per sq in. abs
mp melting point psig lb per sq in. gage
MPC maximum permissible concentration pt point; pint
mph, mi/ h miles per hour PVC polyvinyl chloride
MRT mean radiant temperature Q 1018 Btu
ms manuscript; milliseconds qt quarts
msc mean spherical candles q.v. quod vide (which see)
MSS Manufacturers Standardization Soc. of the Valve & Fittings r roentgens
Industry R gas constant
Mu micron, micro R deg Rankine (Fahrenheit abs); Reynolds number
MW megawatts rad radius; radiation absorbed dose; radian
MW day megawatt day RBE see rem
MWT mean water temperature R-C resistor-capacitor
n polytropic exponent RCA Radio Corporation of America
N number (in mathematical tables) R&D research & development
N number of neutrons; newton RDX cyclonite, a military explosive
Ns specific speed rem Roentgen equivalent man (formerly RBE)
NA not available rev revolutions
NAA National Assoc. of Accountants r-f, rf radio frequency
NACA National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics (see NASA) RMA Rubber Manufacturers Assoc.
NACM National Assoc. of Chain Manufacturers rms square root of mean square
NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration rpm, r/min revolutions per minute
nat. natural rps, r/s revolutions per second
NBC National Broadcasting Company RSHF room sensible heat factor
NBFU National Board of Fire Underwriters ry. railway
NBS National Bureau of Standards s entropy
NCN nitrocarbonitrate (explosive) s seconds
NDHA National District Hearing Assoc. S sulfur, %; siemens
NEC® National Electric Code® (National Electrical Code® and SAE Soc. of Automotive Engineers
NEC® are registered trademarks of the National Fire Protec- sat saturated
tion Association, Inc., Quincy, MA.) SBI steel Boiler Inst.
NEMA National Electrical Manufacturers Assoc. scfm standard cu ft per min
NFPA National Fire Protection Assoc. SCR silicon controlled rectifier
NLGI National Lubricating Grease Institute sec secant of
nm nautical miles sec⫺ 1 angle whose secant is (see cos⫺ 1)
No. (Nos.) number(s) Sec. Section
NPSH net positive suction head sech hyperbolic secant of
NRC Nuclear Regulator Commission (successor to AEC; see also sech⫺ 1 inverse hyperbolic secant of
ERDA) segm segment
NTP normal temperature and pressure SE No. steam emulsion number
O.D., OD outside diameter (pipes) sfc specific fuel consumption, lb per hphr
O.H. open-hearth (steel) sfm, sfpm surface feet per minute
O.N. octane number shp shaft horsepower
op. cit. opere citato (work already cited) SI International System of Units (Le Système International
OSHA Occupational Safety & Health Administration d’Unites)
OSW Office of Saline Water sin sine of
OTS Office of Technical Services, U.S. Dept. of Commerce sin⫺ 1 angle whose sine is (see cos⫺ 1)
oz ounces sinh hyperbolic sine of
p. (pp.) page (pages) sinh⫺ 1 inverse hyperbolic sine of
Pa pascal SME Society of Manufacturing Engineers (successor
P.C. propulsive coefficient to ASTME)
PE polyethylene SNAME Soc. of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers
PEG polyethylene glycol SP static pressure
P.E.L. proportional elastic limit sp specific
PETN an explosive specif specification
pf power factor sp gr specific gravity
PFI Pipe Fabrication Inst. sp ht specific heat
PIV peak inverse voltage spp species unspecified (botanical)
p.m. post meridiem (after noon) SPS standard pipe size
PM preventive maintenance sq square
P.N. performance number sr steradian
ppb parts per billion SSF sec Saybolt Furol
PPI plan position indicator SSU seconds Saybolt Universal (same as SUS)
ppm parts per million std standard
press pressure SUS Saybolt Universal seconds (same as SSU)
Proc. Proceedings SWG Standard (British) wire gage
PSD power spectral density, g2/cps T tesla
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SYMBOLS AND ABBREVIATIONS xxiii

TAC Technical Advisory Committee on Weather Design Condi- USS United States Standard
tions (ASHRAE) USSG U.S. Standard Gage
tan tangent of UTC Coordinated Universal Time
tan⫺ 1 angle whose tangent is (see cos⫺ 1) V volt
tanh hyperbolic tangent of VCF visual comfort factor
tanh⫺ 1 inverse hyperbolic tangent of VCI visual comfort index
TDH total dynamic head VDI Verein Deutscher Ingenieure
TEL tetraethyl lead vel velocity
temp temperature vers versed sine of
THI temperature-humidity (discomfort) index vert vertical
thp thrust horsepower VHF very high frequency
TNT trinitrotoluol (explosive) VI viscosity index
torr ⫽ 1 mm Hg ⫽ 1.332 millibars (1/ 760) atm viz. videlicet (namely)
⫽ (1.013250/ 760) dynes per cm2 V.M. volatile matter, %
TP total pressure vol volume
tph tons per hour VP velocity pressure
tpi turns per in vs. versus
TR transmitter-receiver W watt
Trans. Transactions Wb weber
T.S. tensile strength; tensile stress W&M Washburn & Moen wire gage
tsi tons per sq in w.g. water gage
ttd terminal temperature difference WHO World Health Organization
UHF ultra high frequency W.I. wrought iron
UKAEA United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority W.P.A. Western Pine Assoc.
UL Underwriters’ Laboratory wt weight
ult ultimate yd yards
UMS universal maintenance standards Y.P. yield point
USAF U.S. Air Force yr year(s)
USCG U.S. Coast Guard Y.S. yield strength; yield stress
USCS U.S. Commercial Standard; U.S. Customary System z atomic number; figure of merit
USDA U.S. Dept. of Agriculture Zeit. Zeitschrift
USFPL U.S. Forest Products Laboratory ⌬ mass defect
USGS U.S. Geologic Survey ␮c microcurie
USHEW U.S. Dept. of Health, Education & Welfare ␴, s Boltzmann constant
USN U.S. Navy ␮ micro (⫽ 10⫺ 6), as in ␮s
USP U.S. Pharmacopoeia ␮m micrometer (micron) ⫽ 10⫺ 6 m (10⫺ 3 mm)
USPHS U.S. Public Health Service ⍀ ohm

MATHEMATICAL SIGNS AND SYMBOLS

⫹ plus (sign of addition) ⫽| ⫽ not equal to

⫹ positive :⬟ approaches
⫺ minus (sign of subtraction) ⬀ varies as
⫺ negative ⬁ infinity
⫾ (⫿) plus or minus (minus or plus) √ square root of
3
⫻ times, by (multiplication sign) √ cube root of
⭈ multiplied by ⬖ therefore
⫼ sign of division || parallel to
/ divided by ( ) [ ] {} parentheses, brackets and braces; quantities enclosed by them
: ratio sign, divided by, is to to be taken together in multiplying, dividing, etc.
⬋ equals, as (proportion) AB length of line from A to B
⬍ less than ␲ pi ( ⫽ 3.14159⫹ )
⬎ greater than ° degrees
⬍⬍ much less than ⬘ minutes
⬎⬎ much greater than ⬘⬘ seconds
⫽ equals ⬔ angle
⬅ identical with dx differential of x
⬃ similar to ⌬ (delta) difference
⬇ approximately equals ⌬x increment of x
⬵ approximately equals, congruent ⭸u/⭸x partial derivative of u with respect to x
艋 qual to or less than 兰 integral of
艌 equal to or greater than
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xxiv SYMBOLS AND ABBREVIATIONS

冕 factorial 4 ⫽ 4 ⫻ 3 ⫻ 2 ⫻ 1
a
4!
integral of, between limits a and b |x | absolute value of x
b
养 line integral around a closed path x᝽ first derivative of x with respect to time
兺 (sigma) summation of ẍ second derivative of x with respect to time
f (x), F(x) functions of x AⴒB vector product; magnitude of A times magnitude of B times
exp x ⫽ ex [e ⫽ 2.71828 (base of natural, or Napierian, logarithms)] sine of the angle from A to B; AB sin AB
ⵜ del or nabla, vector differential operator A⭈B scalar product; magnitude of A times magnitude of B times
ⵜ2 Laplacian operator cosine of the angle from A to B; AB cos AB
£ Laplace operational symbol