Two Brigham Young University professors are sharing in a nearly $26 million grant from the Academic Strategic Alliances Program with the University of Utah.

Merrill Beckstead and Thomas Fletcher, both from the BYU department of chemical engineering, will receive approximately $1.6 million over six years, most of which will fund graduate student research."The competition (for the grant) was very stiff, with some of the biggest universities in the nation competing for only five contracts," Beckstead said. "This is an extremely prestigious award and we are honored to receive it."

The grant was awarded in a nationwide competition among 48 universities. The national laboratory program, the Accelerated Strategic Computing Initiative, part of ASAP, awarded the grant to Beckstead, Fletcher and the University of Utah for the establishment of The Center for Simulation of Accidental Fires and Explosions.

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The program's mission is to perform virtual testing using computer simulations. The University of Utah/BYU part of the program will focus on accidental fires and resulting explosions from containers filled with propellant, simulating accidents with missiles.

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