| Term: | Mass-balance rate |
| Definition: | The change of mass per unit of time as the interval of mass change approaches zero, obtained in practice by dividing the mass balance by the duration over which it is measured or modelled. See mass-balance units. The qualifiers 'instantaneous' and 'average' can be used to distinguish between the rate in the mathematical sense and the rate as obtained in practice. For example, the average mass-balance rate |