DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see arguments/remarks filed 11/21/2025, with respect to claim 4 have been fully considered and are persuasive. The 35 U.S.C. 103 of claim 4 has been withdrawn. A new reference Ding was relied upon to teach the claimed heat treatment temperature. See rejection below.
Status of Application
Claims 1-3, 15-16 are withdrawn. Claims 5-7, 9-11 are cancelled. Claims 4, 8, 12-14 are presented for examination.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claim(s) 4, 8, 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Feng (US20140079996A1, previously cited), in view of Yang (US20150194662A1, previously cited), Ding (CN106816596A, translation attached).
Regarding claim 4 and 12, Feng discloses a method of preparing the positive electrode active material for a secondary battery [0034], the method comprising:
preparing a lithium composite transition metal oxide wherein the lithium composite transition metal oxide including 70 mol% or more of nickel (Ni) among total metals excluding lithium (e.g., LiNi0.8Co0.15Al0.05O2 in Example 2-2 [0034])
However, Feng does not disclose wherein the lithium composite transition oxide is washed.
In this regard, Yang is also directed to a method of fabricating a cathode material of Lithium-Nickel-Cobalt-Aluminum composite oxide (abstract), wherein the NCA composite oxide has a core-shell structure. Yang further teaches the core material (e.g., LiNi0.99Co0.01Al0.01O2; Example 1 [0063]-Yang) is washed with methanol, wherein the impurities on the surface of the materials are removed after washing treatment and a uniform nanolayer (i.e., shell) is formed on the surface of the final products [0087]. Thus, a person having ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to wash the lithium composite transition metal oxide of Kim to remove any impurities on the surface of the lithium composite transition metal oxide and to form a uniform nanolayer [0087 Yang].
Modified Feng further discloses in Example 2-2, the step of:
mixing the washed lithium composite transition metal oxide (LiNi0.8Co0.15Al0.05O2 [0041]), a fluorine-based polymer (PVDF [0034]), and a metal coating source (i.e., “Lewis acid” such as oxalic acid [0034] Feng),
which does not include “at least one metal selected from the group consisting of aluminum (Al), titanium (Ti), magnesium (Mg), zirconium (Zr), tungsten (W), and strontium (Sr)”, as claimed.
However, Feng further discloses that the Lewis acid may be selected from at least one of the groups consisting of oxalic acid, aluminum hydroxide, aluminum oxide to improve the environmental stability of the cathode material and to neutralize the LiOH that already exists at the end of the material synthesis process or forms on the surface of the cathode materials due to the exposure of the material to ambient atmosphere after its synthesis [0017 Feng]. Thus, a person having ordinary skill in the art would modify the Lewis acid of Example 2-2 to aluminum hydroxide (i.e., Al(OH)3) with a reasonable expectation that it would improve the environmental stability of the cathode material while also neutralizing the surface of the cathode material.
Feng further discloses that the mixed lithium composite transition metal oxide is dried at the temperature of 25 °C to form a coating portion on surfaces of the lithium composite transition metal oxide [0035 Feng], but does not teach the step of “heat treating the mixture at 600°C or more” as claimed.
In this regard, Ding teaches wherein a NCM composite material is mixed and coated with composite adhesive having polyvinylidene fluoride, wherein the PVDF-coated ternary composite material is placed in a tube furnace at a lower temperature (i.e., 250°C [0029 Ding]), followed by an additional heating at 600°C (Example 1 [Ding 0029]) to form a coating layer having improved bonding performance and low expansion rate, further improving the expansion of the NCM composite material during charging and discharging [0018 Ding].
Thus, it would have been obvious for a person having ordinary skill in the art to have further heat-treated the mixed lithium composite transition metal oxide of Feng at 600°C, which falls within the claimed range of “600°C or more”, with a reasonable expectation to provide a coating layer that improves the expansion of the lithium composite transition metal oxide during charging and discharging [0018 Ding].
Feng further discloses:
wherein the fluorine-based polymer is mixed in an amount of 1 weight % [0034 Feng], which falls within the claimed range of “0.03 part by weight to 5 parts by weight based on 100 parts by weight of the lithium composite transition metal oxide”,
wherein the metal coating source is mixed in an amount of 0.5 part by weight [0034 Feng], which falls within the claimed range of “0.01 part by weight to 5 parts by weight based on 100 parts by weight of the lithium composite transition metal oxide”, and
wherein the fluorine-based polymer and the metal coating source are mixed 1:0.5, which falls within the claimed weight ratio of “1:0.01 to 1:5”
Regarding claim 8, modified Feng teaches the method of claim 4, wherein the temperature of the heat treatment is 500-800℃ [Ding 0011], which encompasses the claimed range of “700°C to 800°C”. It would have been obvious for a person having ordinary skill in the art to have selected the taught range with a reasonable expectation to provide a coating layer that improves the expansion of the lithium composite transition metal oxide during charging and discharging [0018 Ding].
Claim(s) 13-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Feng (US20140079996A1, previously cited), in view of Yang (US20150194662A1, previously cited), Ding (CN106816596A, translation attached), and Lee (KR20170075437, IDS cited 10/12/2021).
Regarding claim 13, modified Feng teaches the method of claim 4, wherein the washing is performed 3 times [0063 Yang]. However, modified Feng does not teach wherein the lithium composite transition metal oxide is washed “for 3 minutes to 60 minutes in a washing liquid at 1 C to 80°C”, as claimed.
In this regard, Lee is directed to a method of preparing a positive electrode active material, wherein the LiNi0.9Co0.07Mn0.03O2 is added to a washing solution (Example 1; [0094] Lee) and stirred for 10 minutes [0094]. Lee further teaches that the washing temperature is 5 to 25°C [0067 Lee], which is fully within the claimed range of 1 C to 80°C. A person having ordinary skill in the art would select the encompassed range of washing temperature, as Lee teaches that such conditions remove residual lithium on the surface of the active material, while preventing lithium loss therein [0067 Lee].
Regarding claim 14, modified Feng teaches the method of claim 4. Modified Feng further teaches wherein the content of washing liquid (i.e., solvent in the washing solution) may be 50 to 200 parts by weight, more specifically 75 to 100 parts by weight, based on 100 parts by weight of the lithium composite oxide [0050 Lee]. Thus, Lee teaches a part by weight ratio of the washing liquid and the lithium composite transition metal oxide of 100 : 50-200, which is fully within the claimed weight ratio of 100:30 to 100:300. A person having ordinary skill in the art would select the overlapping washing liquid to the lithium composite transition metal oxide ratio, as Lee teaches that such condition effectively reduces the lithium on the surface of the washed cathode active material, thereby improving the initial capacity [0051 Lee].
Conclusion
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/T.S./Examiner, Art Unit 1751
/JONATHAN G LEONG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1751 3/10/2026