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SELECTED STANDARD ABBREVIATIONS

absolute (temperature and gravity):  abs
absolute ampere:  abs A
absolute ceiling:  A/C
abstract:  abs
acceleration due to gravity, gram:  g
acre:  spell out
air horsepower:  air hp
alternating current:  ac
altitude:  alt
ambient:  amb
ambient noise meter:  ANM
ammeter:  MM
ampere:  
ampere-hour:  h
ampere-minute:  min
ampere per meter:  /m
ampere per weber:  /Wb
ampere-turn:  t
ampere-turn per meter:  At/m
amplitude modulation:  M
ante meridiem:  .m.
antilogarithm:  ntilog
atmosphere:  tm
atomic:  T
atomic mass unit (unified):  u
atomic volume:   vol
atomic weight:  t wt
attoampere:  A
audio frequency:  F
average:  vg
avoirdupois:  vdp
azimuth:  z 
bar:  bar
barn:  b
barometer:  bar
barrel:  bbl
bel:  B
billion B
billion electronvolts:  BeV
binary coded decimal:  CD
binary digit:  bit
biot:  Bi
bit:  b
bits per inch:  bpi
bits per second:  bps
bit rate:  BR
block coefficient:  b coeff
board foot:  bd-ft
bohr:  bohr
boiling point:  bp
brake horsepower:  bhp
brake horsepower-hour:  bhp-hr
brake mean effective pressure:  bmep
Brinell hardness number:  Bhn
British thermal unit:  Btu
byte:  B
calculate:  calc
caliber:  spell out
Calorie (large):  Cal
calorie (small):  cal
candela:  cd
 candle (obsolete):  d
candle hour, candela hour:  ch or cSh
candlepower:  cp
cathode-ray oscilloscope:  CRO
cathode-ray tube:  crt
Celsius heat unit:  CHU
Celsius thermal unit:  CTU
centare:  Ca
center of gravity:  CG
centerline:  CL
 centibel:  cB
centigram:  cg
centigram second:  cgs
centiliter:  cL
centimeter:  cm
centimeter-gram-second (system):  CGS
centimeter per second:  cm/s
centipoise:  cP
centistoke:  cSt
circular:  cir
circular mil:  cmil
coefficient:  coef
cognate:  cog
cologarithm:  colog
composition:  comp
conductivity:  cndct
confer (compare):  cf
constant:  const
constant hot water:  chw
continued:  contd
continuous wave:  cw
cord-foot:  cd-ft
cosecant:  cosec
hyperbolic cosecant:  csch
cosine:  cos
hyperbolic cosine:  cosh
cotangent:  cot
hyperbolic cotangent:  coth
coulomb:  C
counterweight:  ctwt
critical:  crit.
crystalline:  cryst.
cubic measurements:  (Use abbreviation 
: :  with superscript 3)
curie:  Ci
current density:  c.d.
cycle:  spell out
cycle per second (or hertz):  cps (or Hz)
cylinder, cylindrical:  cyl
darcy:  D
deadweight:  dwt
debye:  D
deca, deka:  da
dacastere:  dks
decibel:  dB
decibel over isotropic:  dBi
decibel referred to 1 milliwatt:  dBm
decibel referred to 1 watt:  dBW
decigram:  dg
degree (angular):  deg 
   (can use degree symbol followed by abbreviation)
degrees of freedom:  df
 dekagram:  dag
dekaliter:  daL
dekameter:  dam
 derivative:  deriv
deviation:  dev
diameter:  dia
dilute:  dil
direct current:  dc
ditto:  spell out
double sideband:  DSB
double-pole double-throw switch dpdt:  sw
double-pole single-throw switch dpst:  sw
dyne:  dyn
edited, edition:  ed.
editor, editors:  Ed., Eds.
effective horsepower:  ehp
electric, electrical:  elec
electromagnetic unit:  emu
electromotive force:  emf
electronic countermeasure:  ECM
electronvolt:  eV
electrostatic unit:  esu
elevation:  el
entropy unit:  en
equation:  eq
equilibrium:  equil
equivalent:  equiv
equivalent airspeed:  eas
erg:  spell out
estimate:  est
et cetera:  etc.
exa (10) (SI prefix):  E
extra high voltage:  ehv
extremely high frequency:  EHF
extremely low frequency:  ELF
farad:  F
farad per meter:  F/m
fathom:  fath
femto (prefix, 10):  f
femtometer:  fm
fermi:  F
filament:  fil
fluid:  fl
fluid dram:  fl dr
following (pages):  ff.
foot:  ft
foot board measure:  fbm
footcandle:  ftc
footlambert:  fL
foot per minute:  ft/min, fpm
foot per second:  ft/s, fps
foot pound:  ftSlb
foot poundal:  ftSpdl
foot pound-force:  ftSlbf
foot-pound-second:  (system) FPS
frames per second:  fps
franklin:  Fr
freezing point:  fp
frequency modulation:  FM
friction horsepower:  fhp
friction mean effective pressure:  fmep
furlong:  fur
fusion point:  fnpt
gallium:  Ga
gallium arsenide:  aAs
gallon:  gal
gallon per minute:  gal/min, gpm
gallon per second:  gal/s, gps
gauge:  ga.
gauss:  G
Germanium:  Ge
gibbs:  gibbs
giga (prefix, 109):  G
gigabyte (1 billion bytes):  GB (or GBytes)
gigacycle per second (or
gigahertz):  Gc/s (or GHz)
giga floating point operations
per second:  GFLOPS
gigaelectronvolt:  GeV
gigahertz:  GHz
gigawatt:  GW
gilbert:  Gb
grain:  gr
gram:  g
gram atom:  g-at
gram-calorie:  g-cal
gram mole:  g-mole
ground:  gnd
gross weight:  grwt
hectare:  ha
hectogram:  hg
hectoliter:  hL
hectometer:  hm
height:  ht.
henry:  H
microhenry:  mH
hertz:  Hz
high energy:  HE
high explosive:  HE
high frequency:  HF
high-pressure (adj.):  spell out
high voltage:  HV
hops per second:  HPS
horsepower:  hp
horsepower-hour:  hph
hour:  h
hundredweight:  cwt
hydrogen ion concentration:  pH
hydroxyl ion concentration:  pOH
hyperbolic tangent:  tanh
hyperbolic cosine:  cosh
impedance:  Z
inch:  in
inch per second:  in/s
inch pound:  n-lb
inches per minute:  in/min
indicated airspeed:  IAS
indicated horsepower:  ihp
infrared:  IR
inside diameter:  ID
instructions per second:  IPS
intermediate frequency:  IF
intermediate-pressure (adj.):  spell out
international angstrom:  I
isometric:  isom.
isothermal:  isoth.
isotropic:  iso.
jet horsepower jet:  hp
joule:  J
joule per degree kelvin:  J/K
karat kt
kelvin (273.15 + temp in oC):  K
 kilobits per second:  kbps, kb/s
kilocalorie:  kcal
kilocalorie per mole:  kcal/mole
kilohertz:  kHz
kiloelectronvolt:  keV
kilogauss:  kG
kilogram-calorie:  kg-cal
kilogram-force:  kgf
kilogram meter:  kg-m
kilogram per second:  kg/s
kilohertz:  kHz
kilomegacycle:  kMc
kilometer:  km
kilometer per hour:  km/h
kilo-oersted:  kOe
kilohm:  kW
kilojoule:  kJ
kiloliter:  kL
kilo per cubic meter:  kg/m
kiloton:  kt
kilovar:  kvar
kilovolt:  kV
kilovoltampere:  kVA
kilovolt peak:  kVp
kilowatt:  kW
kilowatthour:  kWh
kiloyard:  kyd
kinetic energy:  KE
knot:  kn or spell out
knots equivalent airspeed knots:  EAS
knots indicated airspeed knots:  IAS
knots true airspeed knots:  TAS
lambert:  L
latitude:  lat.
least mean square:  LMS
letter:  ltr
limit:  lim
line of sight (0-30 miles):  LOS
linear foot:  lin ft
lines pairs per millimeter:  LP/mm
lines per minute:  l/m
lines per second:  l/s
liquid oxygen:  lox
 logarithm:  log
logarithm (natural):  ln
longitude:  long.
low frequency:  LF
low-pressure (adj.):  spell out
lumen:  lm
lumen-hour:  lmSh
lumen per square foot:  lm/ft2
lumen per square meter:  lm/m2
lumen per watt:  lm/W
lumen second:  lmSs
lux:  lx
mach number:  M
magnetic:  mag
magnetomotive force:  m.m.f.
manhour:  (prefer workhour, Wh):  M/H
mark:  Mk
mass unit:  mu
maximum:  max.
maxwell:  Mx
mean effective pressure:  mep
mean point of impact:  MPI
mean sea level:  MSL
medium frequency:  MF
megabit:  Mb
megabits per second:  Mbps
megabyte:  MB, Mbyte
megabytes per second:  MBps
megahertz:  MHz
megaton:  Mton, Mt
megavolt:  MV
megawatt:  MW
megohm:  MW
meter:  m
meter-kilogram-second (system):  MKS
meter per second:  m/s
melting point:  mp
mho:  (obsolete, use s, siemens):  spell out
microampere:  mA
microbar:  mbar
microfarad:  mF
microgram:  mg
microhenry:  mH
micrometer:  mm
microsecond:  ms
microsiemens:  mS
microwatt:  mW
mil:  spell out
mile (statute):  mi
mile per hour:  mi/h, mph
milli (prefix, 10):  m
milliampere:  mA
millibar:  mb
millibarn:  mb
millicurie:  mCi
milliequivalent:  meq
millifarad:  mF
milligauss:  mG
milligram:  mg
millihertz:  mHz
millihenry:  mH
millilambert:  mL
milliliter:  mL
millimeter:  mm, mL
millimeters of mercury:  mmHg
millimicron:  mm
millimole:  mmole
million:  M
million pounds per square inch:  MSI
millions of instructions per second:  MIPS
milliradians:  mrad
milliroentgen:  mr
milliroentgen equivalent man:  mrem
milliroentgen equivalent physical:  mrep
millisecond:  ms
millivolt:  mV
milliwatt:  mW
minimum:  min.
minute (time):  min
modulator:  mod
molar:  M
mole:  spell out
molecular weight:  mol wt
molecule:  mol
month:  mo
myriagram:  myg
myrialiter:  myl
nanoampere:  nA
nanofarad:  nF
nanometer:  nm
nanosecond:  ns
nanowatt:  nW
narrowband:  nb
nautical mile:  nmi
natural logarithm:  nl
neper:  Np
newton:  N
newton-meter:  N-m
newton per square meter:  N/m2
nitrocellulose:  NC
nitroglycerin:  NG
normal:  norm.
normal (as applied to concentration):  N
ohm:  W
ounce (avoirdupois):  oz
ounce-foot:  oz-ft
ounce-inch:  oz-in
outside diameter:  OD
page:  p.(plural, pp.)
paragraph:  par.
part:  pt.
part per million:  ppm, p/m
pascal:  Pa
pascal-second:  Pa-s
pel, pixel, pita (1015):  P
pennyweight:  pwt
perpendicular:  per.
photoelectromagnetic:  PEM
pico (prefix, 10-12):  p
picoampere:  pA
picofarad:  pF
picosecond:  ps
picowatt:  pW
picture element:  pel
pint:  pt
poise:  P
post meridiem:  p.m.
potentiometer:  pot
potential difference:  spell out
pound:  lb
poundal:  pdl
pound, apothecaries:  lb ap
pound, avoirdupois:  lb,avdp
pound per foot:  lb/ft
pound-force:  lbf
pound-force foot:  lbf/ft
pound per square inch:  lb/in2, psi
pound-per-square inch absolute:  psia
pound-per-square-inch gauge:  psig
pound-mass:  lbm
pound, ton:  lbt
power:  pwr
power amplifier:  pa
power factor:  pf
prandtl number:  Pr
precipitate:  ppt
pressure-volume-temperature:  pvt
pulses per minute:  ppm
pulse amplitude modulation:  pam
pulse code modulation:  PCM
pulse duration modulation:  PDM
pulse position modulation:  PPM
pulse repetition frequency:  PRF
pulses per second:  pps
pulse width:  pW
quadrant:  quad
quadrant elevation:  QE
quart:  qt
quintal:  q
rad:  rd
radian:  rad
radio frequency:  RF
radius:  R
range:  rng
reference:  ref
relative:  rel
relative humidity:  rh
revolution:  rev
revolution per minute:  r/min, rpm
revolution per second:  r/s, rps
rhombic:  rhomb
rod:  spell out
roentgen:  R
roentgen equivalent man:  rem
roentgen equivalent physical:  rep
root-mean-square:  rms
saturate:  sat
secant:  sec
second (time):  s
shaft horsepower:  shp
siemens (replaces mho):  S
sine:  sin
hyperbolic sine:  sinh
single-pole double-throw switch:  spdt sw
single-pole single-throw switch:  spst sw
single sideband:  ssb
slug:  spell out
solution:  soln.
specific gravity:  sp gr
specific heat:  sp ht
specific volume:  sp vol
spherical candlepower:  scp
square:  sq
standard:  std
standing-wave ratio:  swr
steradian:  sr
super-high frequency:  SHF
switch (used only in art):  sw
tangent:  tan
target-detecting device:  tdd
telemetry:  tlmy
temperature:  temp
tensile strength:  ts
tesla:  T
thermal megawatt:  tMW
thrust horsepower:  thp
tolerance:  tol
ton:  spell out
tonne:  t
torr:  spell out
transducer:  xdcr
transistor:  xstr
translated, translation, translator:  tr
troy:  t
true airspeed:  tas
true mean:  tm
true position:  TP
Twaddell:  Twad
ultrahigh frequency:  UHF
ultrahigh voltage:  UHV
ultraviolet:  UV
universal time:  UT
vapor density:  VD
variation:  var
versed sine:  vers
versus:  vs.
very high frequency:  VHF
very low frequency:  VLF
voice unit:  VU
video frequency:  VF
viscosity:  visc
volt:  V
voltampere:  VA
voltampere reactive:  VAr
volts, alternating current:  Vac
volts, direct current:  Vdc
volt-ohm-milliammeter:  VOM
volume:  vol.
watt:  W
watthour:  Wh
watt per candle:  W/c
watt per steradian:  W/sr
wavelength:  WL
weber:  Wb
week:  wk
weight:  wt
wideband:  WB
workyear:  WH
yard:  yd
year:  yr

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