Babbitt – a soft, white, non-ferrous alloy of copper, antimony, tin and lead. Found in sleeve/journal bearing overlays.

Bactericide – chemical agent that inhibits the growth of bacteria promoted by the presence of water.

Base – a material that neutralizes acids. Also, term referring to an oil additive containing colloidally dispersed metal carbonate, used to reduce corrosive wear.

Base stock – a primary refined petroleum fraction or a selected synthetic material, into which additives are blended to produce finished lubricants.

Batch – quantity of product resulting from a single blending or other processing operation.

Bearing – a machine part which positions and supports load and movement through the action of fitted or formed surfaces that move with respect to each other by sliding, rolling, reciprocating, or by combinations of these motions. Selected bearing types are:

	TYPE DESCRIPTION Rolling element bearings Deep groove ball Cylindrical roller Tapered roller Spherical roller Needle roller Generally consist of two races (rings or raceways) with a set of rolling elements running in their tracks. The rolling elements are in the form of balls or various types of rollers. The outer race is located in a housing and the inner race on the shaft. In 'self-aligning' types, often one of the races is not fixed axially but is free to move to allow for limited shaft movement. In 'thrust' types, the races are configured to support additional angular contact for axial loading. In needle roller bearings, there is no inner race, no element separator, and the rolling elements turn very close together directly against the shaft. Plain (sliding) bearings Journal Guide Thrust Generally consist of a unmoving solid surface conforming to, and operating directly against, an opposing shaft or plate. Journals may be single-piece or in connected sections, and wrap around all or part of the shaft surface. Guide bearings align rotating or reciprocating parts, while thrust bearings prevent a shaft from moving endwise and support heavy directional loads. Tilting pad thrust bearing Characterized by a journal-like enclosure of several separately mounted pivoting pads mounted at right angles to the shaft. Sector pad thrust bearing (also known as Kingsbury bearing) Characterized by a series of pivoted wedge-shaped segments mounted parallel to the shaft, against a circular thrust collar extending outward at right angles from the shaft. Flat bearings Various types of slides, guides and ways.

Beta Rating – efficiency-based filter performance rating. This is done using the Multi-Pass Test which counts the number of particles of a given size before and after fluid passes through a filter, over multiple passes of the fluid through the filter being tested.

Beta ratio (ß-ratio) -- the ratio of the number of particles greater than a given size entering a filter to the number of particles greater than the same size leaving the filter, under specified test conditions.

Black oils – lubricants containing asphaltic materials, which impart extra adhesiveness, that are used for open gears and steel cables.

Blend(ing) – composite of two or more components or lubricants for the purpose of obtaining the desired physical and/or chemical properties. In petroleum product manufacture, a blend may consist of two or more basestocks or a basestock combined with chemical additives.

Bloom – rapid growth and spread of a bacterial or algal colony. Also, fluorescence; the color of an oil by reflected light that could differ from its color by transmitted light.

Blow-by – passage of unburned fuel and combustion gases past the piston rings of internal combustion engines, resulting in fuel dilution and contamination of the crankcase oil.

Boundary lubrication – the state of lubrication when conditions exist that do not permit the formation of a lubricant film capable of completely separating the moving parts. Under these conditions, additives are used to increase oil film strength or coat metal surfaces with a sacrificial 'anti-wear' film. Anti-wear additives are commonly used in more severe boundary lubrication applications. The more severe cases of boundary lubrication are defined as extreme pressure conditions; they are managed with lubricants containing EP additives that prevent sliding surfaces from fusing together at high local temperatures and pressures.

Boiling point – the temperature at which a substance boils, or is converted into vapor by bubbles forming within the liquid; it varies with pressure.

Bottoms – in refining, the high-boiling point residual liquid that collects at the bottom of a distillation column, such as a pipe still. Examples of bottoms include such components as heavy fuels and asphalts.

Brinelling – permanent deformation of the bearing surfaces where the rollers (or balls) contact the races. Brinelling results from excessive load or impact on stationary bearings. It is a form of mechanical damage in which metal is displaced or upset without being permanently removed from the surface.

Brookfield viscosity -- apparent viscosity in cP (centipoise) determined by Brookfield viscometer, which measures the torque required to rotate a spindle at constant speed in oil of a given temperature. Basis for measuring low temperature viscosity of lubricants.

BTU – British thermal unit. The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 pound of water 1 degree Fahrenheit.

BS&W (bottom sediment and water)-- the material that collects in the bottom of storage tanks, usually composed of oil, water, and foreign matter. Also called bottoms, or bottom settling and water.

Bubble point – the differential (inner vs. outer) gas pressure at which the first steady stream of gas bubbles is emitted from a wetted filter element under specified test conditions.

Burst pressure rating -- maximum specified differential pressure that can be applied to a filter element without outward structural or filter-medium failure.

Bushing – a usually removable cylindrical lining for an opening used to limit the size of the opening, resist abrasion, or serve as a guide.

Bypass filtration -- filtration approach in which only part of the total flow of a circulating fluid system passes through a filter at any given time, or approach in which a separate pump and filter combination operates in parallel to the main flow.

Bypass valve -- differential pressure valve or fitting on a filter which opens when the filter reaches a preset maximum capacity, assuring continued flow by allowing part or all of the fluid to bypass the filter element.