This book presents edited contributions from the NATO Advanced Training Course (ATC) entitled “Critical Energy Infrastructure Protection: Innovative Structures and Materials for Blast and Ballistic Protection”, held as a virtual event from 22 to 25 March 2021. This ATC was organized by the Ecole Militaire Polytechnique-Algeria and the Military University of Technology-Poland. The principal aim of the course was to gather specialists from those NATO member countries, represented by France, Belgium and Poland, and NATO partner countries, represented by Algeria and Tunisia, interested in the protection of critical infrastructure against terrorist attacks, and to share research and practical experience in this field. The meeting provided a forum for participants and speakers to disseminate their recent work on the protection of critical infrastructure, with a special focus on advanced materials and structures, modeling and numerical simulation, behavior of materials at a high strain rate and high temperature, and blast mitigation techniques. We also believe that this ATC served to promote the exchange of ideas, as well as international cooperation among scientists and engineers from this important field. We are particularly indebted to the head of the Ecole Militaire Polytechnique (EMP) for hosting fifty (50) Algerian participants/speakers at the EMP for the duration of the ATC event. Furthermore, we are indebted to the organizers for the success of the virtual meeting of participants and speakers from these two parts of NATO. We offer our sincere gratitude to all the speakers for their excellent lectures, and we are also deeply indebted to all those who answered our call for the papers included in this book. We acknowledge the excellent and active participation of the trainees and their invaluable critical discussions. In conclusion, this ATC contributed added value to NATO’s role in the protection of critical infrastructure and the Alliance’s Strategic Objective of Partnership. The book will be of interest to all those whose work involves protecting critical infrastructure from the threat of terrorist attacks.

Finally, on behalf of the co-directors of the ATC and all the authors, we would like to express deep gratitude to the NATO Emerging Security Challenges Division for the moral, professional, and financial support which enabled the organization of this event.

Leopold Kruszka

Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geodesy, Military University of Technology, Poland

Djalel Eddine Tria

Laboratoire Dynamique des Systèmes Mécaniques, Ecole Militaire Polytechnique, Algeria