Browse Acronyms

Browse the acronym list:

B Listing

B
– billion(s) [when used with dollars, use only when preceded by dollar sign and one or more numbers; use no space between number and B (e.g., $2B = $2,000,000,000 or two billion dollars)]
– boron (element, Z = 5)
– byte
– magnetic field strength in teslas

b
barn [convert to SI: square meter (m²); sometimes "barn" is acceptable]

B&A
Bid and Award

B&F
Business and Finance Division (formerly F&M) (now F&BM) (ORNL)

B&G
bitumen and gravel

B&PV
Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code

B&R
budget and reporting

B&RC
– budget and reporting classification
– budget and resource classification

B&W
Babcock and Wilcox (preferred over "B-W")

B-W
Babcock and Wilcox ("B&W" is preferred)

B.A.
Bachelor of Arts (also A.B.)

B.S.
Bachelor of Science

B/C
benefit-to-cost ratio

B/P
blueprint

B₂H₆
diborane (gas)

BA
– batavia Area Office (DOE)
– budget authorization
– building audit

Ba
barium (element, Z = 56)

BAA
Broad Agency Announcement

BaA
benz[a]anthracene

BAAQMD
Bay Area Air Quality Management District

BAC
budget at completion

BACT
best available control technology

BAI
backup aircraft inventory

BaP
benz[a]pyrene or benzo[a]pyrene

bar
[do not abbreviate this word (obsolete unit); convert to SI: pascal (Pa)]

BASEC
Budget Allocation System for Environmental Cleanup

BASH
bird-aircraft strike hazard

BASIC
beginner's all-purpose symbolic instruction code

BAT
best available technology

BB
billion barrels

BBA
Beryllium Boundary Area

BBC
balanced biological community

BBCSI
Brown-Boveri Control Systems, Inc.

BBD
bucket-brigade device

BBE
base bioenvironmental engineer

BBER
Bureau of Business and Economic Research

bbl
barrel [convert to SI: cubic meter (m³/s)]

BBS
– Behavior-Based Safety
– Bulletin Board System

BC
– bear Creek
– before Christ
– boundary condition
– β-glucosidase

BCBG
Bear Creek Burial Ground

bcc
body-centered cubic

BCCP
Baseline Configuration Control Board

BCD
– base-catalyzeddecomposition
– binary-coded decimal

BCE
base civil engineer

BCF
bioconcentration factor

BCL
Battelle Columbus Laboratories (Columbus, Ohio)

BCM
Binary Chemical Munitions Program

BCOE
barrels of crude oil equivalent

BCP
– base Comprehensive Plan (USAF)
– baseline change proposal

BCR
Base Community Relations

BCRA
Base Closure and Realignment Act

BCS
– bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer theory
– boundary control station

BCT
– best conventionaltechnology
– best conventional treatment

BCTIC
Biomedical and Computing Technology Information Center

BCTTA
Biology and Center for Technical Transfer Area

BCVWDA
Bear Creek Valley Waste Disposal Area

BCWP
budgeted cost of work performed

BCWS
budgeted cost of the work scheduled

BD
Biology Division (ORNL)

Bd
Bound (math)

bd-ft
board-foot [convert to SI: cubic meter (m³)]

BDAT
best demonstrated available technology

BDB
beyond design basis

BDBA
beyond-design-basis accident

BDHT
blowdown heat transfer

BDMS
Bioassay Data Management System

BDN
Biodenitrification Facility

Be
beryllium (element, Z = 4)

BE
Biomedical and Environmental Science Laboratory

BEA
Bureau of Economic Analysis

BEC
Boeing Engineering and Construction Company

BEE
bioenvironmental engineer

BEHD
bis(3-ethylhexyl)phthalate

BEIA
Biomedical and Environmental Information Analysis (Section) (formerly IR&A)

BEIR
biological effects of ionizing radiation (National Research Council)

BEL
Biological Evaluation Laboratory

BEMS
Bio Electro Magnetics Society

BeO
beryllium oxide

BEP
Bureau of Engraving and Printing

BEPO
British Experimental Pile (see GLEEP)

BEPS
Buildings Energy Performance Standards

BEQ
bachelor enlisted quarters

BER
– bit error rate
– Building Equipment Research

BERC
Building Envelope Research Center (ORNL)

BERD
Buildings Energy Research and Development (DOE Office)

BERR
Building Energy Retrofit Research

BES
– basic Energy Sciences
– Bioenvironmental Engineering Services
– Biomedical and Environmental Sciences
– bounding event sequence

BESD
Bioenvironmental Engineering Services Division

BESI
Bioenvironmental Engineering Service Industrial

BET
– baseline Evaluation Test
– Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (adsorption equation)

BF
bright field

BF₃
boron fluoride

BFAF
beamformer antialiasing filter

BFDP
Biofuels Feedstock Development Program

BFOQ
bona fide occupational qualifications

BFR
Breeder Fuel Reprocessing

BFS
binary feature signature

BG
– british Gas (Corp.)
– burial ground

BG&E
Baltimore Gas & Electric

BG/SL
British Gas Slagging Lurgi

BGC
British Gas Corp.

BGO
bismuth germinate

BGS
below ground surface

BHA
butylated hydroxyanisole

BHC
benzene hexachloride

BHN
Brinell hardness number

bhp
brake horsepower

BHT
butylated hydroxytoluene

BI
Billings Area Office (DOE)

Bi
– biot [convert to SI: ampere (A)]
– bismuth (element, Z = 83)

BIA
Bureau of Indian Affairs (DOI)

BiCMOS
bipolar complementary metal-oxide semiconductor

BID
background information document

BIE
bounded implicit enumeration

BIEA
Building Innovations Economic Analysis

BIL
basic impulse level

BIO
Basis for Interim Operation

BIOMOVS
International Biospheric Model Validation Study

BIOS
basic input/output system (computer term)

BIPM
International Bureau of Weights and Measures (Bureau International des Poids et Mesures)

BIS
Bismarck District Office (DOE)

BITS
Benefits Information Telephone System

BJC
Bechtel Jacobs Company LLC

BJT
bipolar junction transistor

BK
Brookhaven Area Office (DOE)

Bk
berkelium (element, Z = 97)

BL
Bettis Atomic Power Laboratory

BLAS
Basic Linear Algebra Subprogram

BLC
building load coefficient

Bldg.
Building (use when followed by number)

BLM
Bureau of Land Management (DOI)

BLS
– below land surface
– Bureau of Labor Statistics (DOL)

BM&A
Business Management and Administration

BM/C³
Battle Management Command Control Communications

BMAP
Biological Monitoring and Abatement Program

BMAR
backlog of maintenance and repair

BMDL
below method detection level

BMDO
Ballistic Missile Defense Organization

BMEWS
Ballistic Missile Early Warning System

BMG
Bureau of Mines and Geology (DOI)

BMI
– battelle Memorial Institute
– body mass index

BMIP
Business Management Integration Project

BMO
Business Management Organization (now Finance and Business Management)

BMP
best management practice

BMS
– biomedical studies
– Business Management System

BMSL
below mean sea level

BMSP
Business Management Systems and Procedures

BMW
bombardment wing (USAF)

BMWT
Biofuels and Municipal Waste Technology Division (DOE)

BN
boron nitride

BNA
Bureau of National Affairs, Inc. (Washington, D.C.)

BNF
British Nuclear Fuels

BNFP
Barnwell Nuclear Fuel Plant

BNI
Bechtel National, Inc.

BNL
Brookhaven National Laboratory (Upton, New York)

BNWL
Battelle Northwest Laboratories (now PNL) (Richland, Washington)

BO
budget outlay/obligation

BOA
– basic ordering agreement
– Broadband Optical Absorber

BOB
U.S. Bureau of the Budget (now OMB)

BOC
beginning of cycle

BOD
– biochemical (or biological) oxygen demand [a subscript number (e.g., BOD₅) represents the number of days over which measurements were taken]
– Business Operations Division

BOD₅
5-day biochemical (or biological) oxygen demand

BOIP
Basis of Issue Plan

BOIP/QQPRI
Basis of Issue Plan/Quantitative and Qualitative Personnel Requirements Information

BOM
– benthic organic matter
– U.S. Bureau of Mines (DOI) (also USBM and BuMines)

BOMA
Building Owners and Managers Association

BONUS
Boiling Nuclear Superheat Reactor

BOP
– balance of plant
– blowout preventer

BOQ
bachelor officer quarters

BOR
Bureau of Outdoor Recreation

BOS
Base Operating Support

BP
– boiling point
– British Petroleum (a company name)

bp
boiling point

BPA
– blanket purchasing agreement
– Bonneville Power Administration

BPA-LC
Bonneville Power Administration - Lower Columbia Area

BPA-SR
Bonneville Power Administration - Snake River Office

BPA-UC
Bonneville Power Administration - Upper Columbia Area

BPAO
Base Public Affairs Office

BPCD
bipolar pulse conductivity detector

BPCT
best practicable control technology

BPDE
benzo[a]pyrene-diol-epoxide

bpi
bits (binary digits) per inch (computer term)

BPI
boost-phase intercept

BPJ
best professional judgment

BPMD
Battelle Project Management Division

BPN
backpropagation network

BPO
Bartlesville Project Office (DOE)

bps
bits (binary digits) per second (computer term)

BPT
back-pressure turbine

BPU
bypass unit

BPX
Burning Plasma Experimental Reactor

Bq
becquerel

BR
breeder reactor

Br
bromine (element, Z = 35)

BR3
Belgian reactor (40 MW)

BRA
Beryllium Restricted Area

BRC
below regulatory concern

BRDC
Bioprocessing Research and Development Center (CTD)

BREN
Bare Reactor Experiment - Nevada

BRET
Breeder Reprocessing Engineering Test

BRF
Bioprocessing Research Facility

BRG
Budget Review Group

BRI
Business Risk International

BROT
badge reader-operated turnstile

BRP
Breeder Reactor Program

BRS
– badge Reader System
– broad-range spectrometer

BS
Boston Support Office (DOE)

BSD
Business Systems Division

BSEP
Brine Sampling and Evaluation Program

BSF
Bulk Shielding Facility

BSFC
brake-specific fuel consumption

BSL
biodenitrification surge lagoon

BSM
bilateral servomanipulator

BSNET
Bachelor of Science in Nuclear Engineering Technology

BSR
Bulk Shielding Reactor

BSSC
Building Siesmic Safety Council

BSTS
Boost-Phase Surveillance and Tracking System

BTC
– breakthrough curve (column-elution tests)
– Buildings Technology Center (formerly RRC) (ORNL)

BTD
breakthrough detector

BTDC
bulk thermal desorption chamber

BTECC
Building Thermal Envelope Coordination Council

BTESIM
Building Thermal Envelope Systems and Insulating Materials

BTESM
Building Thermal Envelope Systems and Materials

BTIS
beam tube isolation system

BTP
– bistable trip processor
– Branch Technical Position

BTS
Bureau of Transportation Statistics

Btu
British thermal unit [convert to SI: joule (J) or, in some cases, watt (W)]

BTX
benzene-toluene-xylene

BU
Butte Projects Office (DOE)

bu
bushel [convert to SI: cubic meter (m³)]

BUDPREP
budget preparation system

BUILD
Baseload Utilities Integrated Location Decisions (System)

Bul.
Bulletin (use when followed by number in citations)

BuMines
U.S. Bureau of Mines (DOI) (also BOM and USBM)

BUR
– built-up roof
– Business Unit Review

BURC
Business Unit Review Committee

BUSTR
Bureau of Underground Storage Tank Regulation

BVLLLWUP
Bethel Valley Liquid Low-Level Waste Upgrade Project

BVLLW
Bethel Valley low-level waste

BWEMSP
Beryllium Worker Enhanced Medical Surveillance Program (ORISE)

BWIP
Basalt Waste Isolation Project

BWP
– Beryllium Work Permit
– Burial Waste Program

BWR
boiling-water reactor

BWROG
Boiling Water Reactor Owners' Group

BWRSAT
boiling-water reactor severe accident technology

BWXT
BWX Technologies

BY
budget year

BZ
nonlethal but incapacitating age

°B
degrees Baumé