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Scuderi Engine Prototype on Display at Washington Auto Show

Company to Discuss Early Test Results of Air-Hybrid Technology

Washington, D.C. area residents and government and agency officials will be introduced to the working cutaway prototype of the Scuderi Engine (www.ScuderiEngine.com) at this week's 2010 Washington Auto Show (www.washingtonautoshow.com), to be held January 26-31 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Hall A.

The Scuderi Engine employs a new and proven thermodynamic process known as the Scuderi Cycle. Many believe this new technology could be the biggest advancement in internal combustion engines since the Otto cycle over 130 years ago. The Scuderi Engine is a split-cycle design that separates the four strokes of a conventional engine over two paired cylinders. One does intake/compression while the other does power/exhaust.

Using a unique combustion process known as firing after top dead center, the Scuderi Engine has better power, higher efficiency and lower emissions than a conventional engine. In addition, by adding an air storage tank connected between the paired cylinders, the Scuderi Engine can be converted into an air-hybrid engine. Air-hybrids recapture energy normally lost during braking -- as does an electric hybrid -- except air-hybrids use compressed air instead of electric batteries to store energy.

Engineers from Scuderi Group will discuss preliminary studies that show significant advantages of the Scuderi Air-Hybrid over the performance and cost of electric hybrids. One of the most significant advantages is the Scuderi Air-Hybrid's ability to store and release energy more efficiently. It takes a long time to charge electric batteries, which use up that energy very quickly when driving the vehicle off the battery. In a Scuderi Air-Hybrid, which uses compressed air instead of electricity, energy can be stored very quickly. And by feeding the compressed air into the combustion process of the Scuderi Engine, the stored energy is used much more efficiently.

Another very significant advantage is the cost and weight of the Scuderi Air-Hybrid compared to electric hybrids. Electric hybrids require two separate drive systems. One is the internal combustion engine; the other consists of batteries, electric motors and their controls. This adds significant weight and cost to the vehicle, on the order of 400 to 500 pounds and $3000 to $4000 per vehicle. The Scuderi Air-Hybrid requires only the addition of an air tank and some controls. The cost is only a few hundred dollars and the weight is about one-tenth that of an electric system.

"A vehicle driven with a Scuderi Air-Hybrid Engine could run significantly longer on the energy stored in the air tank than an electric hybrid can operate off its battery," said Sal Scuderi, President, Scuderi Group. "If preliminary test results continue to be validated, a Scuderi Air-Hybrid Engine would potentially be the most efficient hybrid system to date, and it would be available for a fraction of the cost of an electric hybrid system."

The Scuderi Engine is currently in development at independent laboratory Southwest Research Institute. For more information on the Scuderi Engine, visit www.ScuderiEngine.com.

About Scuderi Group

Based in West Springfield, Mass., USA, with offices in Frankfurt, Germany, Scuderi Group, LLC is a research and development company focused on proliferating its technology through R&D and licensing. Its revolutionary Scuderi Cycle technology, when fully developed, is expected to be the most significant improvement in internal combustion engine efficiency in over 130 years. Scuderi Group's global patent portfolio contains more than 200 patents including 72 issued in more than 50 countries. For more information call 1-413-439-0343 or visit www.ScuderiEngine.com.