The
Baumé scale is a pair of
hydrometer scales developed by French pharmacist
Antoine Baumé in 1768 to measure
density of various liquids. The unit of the Baumé scale has been notated variously as
degrees Baumé,
B°,
Bé° and simply Baumé (the accent is not always present). One scale measures the density of liquids heavier than water and the other, liquids lighter than water. The Baumé of
distilled water is 0.