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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 11/03/25 has been entered.
Status of Claims
Applicant’s amendment and arguments, filed 11/03/2025, have been fully considered. Claim(s) 1–5, 8, and 13 stand(s) as originally or previously presented; and claim(s) 6, 7, 10, 14, and 16–20 remain(s) withdrawn, with claim 14 amended; and claim 15 is canceled; no new matter has been added. Examiner affirms that the original disclosure provides adequate support for the amendment.
Upon considering said amendment and arguments, the previous 35 U.S.C. 103 rejection set forth in the Office Action mailed 07/02/2025 has/have been withdrawn in favor of the new grounds of rejection below citing evidentiary reference Long. Additionally, new grounds of rejection over Rangasamy are presented below.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text forming the basis for the rejection under 35 U.S.C. 103 may be found in a prior Office Action.
Claim(s) 1 and 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rangasamy et al. (WO 2020256806 A1, from 07/02/25 PTO-892) (Rangasamy).
Regarding claim 1, Rangasamy discloses a method (e.g., ¶ 0008) comprising providing a metal anode (current collector, e.g., ¶ 0008, 0049).
Rangasamy exemplifies several possible metals such as zinc for the collector (¶ 0049) but fails to explicitly embody such.
As Rangasamy is analogous prior art to the claimed invention because they pertain to the same field of endeavor, namely 2D-TMD coatings atop metal anodes, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to routinely incorporate Zn as the collector—and, thus, form a Zn metal anode—with the reasonable expectation of forming a successful current collector (MPEP 2143 (A.), 2144.07).
Rangasamy further discloses depositing at least one layer of a 2D TMD material TiS2 atop a Li metal film layered on the collector, i.e., Zn metal anode (e.g., TiS2 in ¶ 0046, 0069–0075). As the instant specification fails to specially define “on,” the broadest reasonable interpretation of such, in light of the specification, appears to allow an intervening layer (the Li metal) between the 2D TMD and Zn anode such that Rangasamy would meet claim 1.
Regarding claim 2, Rangasamy discloses the method of claim 1.
Rangasamy further discloses that other 2D TMD materials such as MoS2 and WS2 are equally appropriate as protective films (e.g., ¶ 0055) though fails to explicitly embody such.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to routinely substitute Rangasamy’s TiS2 with MoS2 or WS2 with the reasonable expectation of producing a successful protective film (see, e.g., MPEP 2144.06 (I), 2143 (B.)).
Claim(s) 1–5 and 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen (WO 2020176787 A1) as evidenced by Long et al. (Tuning Nonlinear Optical Absorption Properties of WS2 Nanosheets, available 2015) (Long).
Regarding claims 1 and 2, Chen discloses a method (coating deposition, e.g., ¶ 0040) comprising providing a zinc metal anode (e.g., ¶ 0040, 0054).
Chen further discloses applying a coating atop the Zn anode to increase electrolytic wettability (¶ 0040), where the coating may comprise, e.g., tungsten sulfide (¶ 0036)—i.e., the 2D TMD material WS2, as evidenced by Long’s Introduction (p. 17771) and Experimental Section (top of p. 17772, left col.)—but fails to explicitly disclose an embodiment of such.
Chen is analogous prior art to the claimed invention because they pertain to the same field of endeavor, namely Zn anode coatings.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to routinely coat Chen’s Zn anode with at least one layer of WS2 with a reasonable expectation of forming a successful coating to increase the anode’s electrolyte wettability, as taught by Chen (see also MPEP 2143 (A.), 2144.07).
Regarding claim 3, Chen discloses the method of claim 1.
Chen further exemplarily discloses several possible coating techniques, including, e.g., an electrochemical technique (electroplating, ¶ 0047), but fails to explicitly disclose an embodiment of such.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to routinely coat Chen’s Zn anode via electrochemical deposition with a reasonable expectation of forming a successful anode coating (see also MPEP 2143 (A.)).
Regarding claims 4 and 5, Chen discloses the method of claim 3.
Although Chen, as noted above, discloses depositing the coating such as WS2 to increase the anode’s electrolyte wettability, as well as controlling the thickness to preferably 0.1–500 nm (¶ 0037, 0040), Chen fails to explicitly disclose controlling a deposition time of the electrochemical deposition to between 1 and 1000 seconds to control a thickness of the at least one layer of the 2D TMD material.
However, one skilled in the art would recognize that deposition time would necessarily dictate coating thickness, further understanding that the coating must be thick enough to perform its function of increasing electrolyte wettability, while a too thick coating would necessarily reduce the Zn anode’s relative active-material content and, thus, the electrode’s energy density. To balance these effects, then, it would have been obvious to control the deposition time and, thus, thickness, and, therefore, arrive at the recited time by routinely optimizing the deposition time (MPEP 2144.05 (II)).
Regarding claim 13, Chen discloses the method of claim 1, further comprising providing a composite cathode comprising a carbon material having a MnO2 coating (applying manganese oxide cathode active material mixture atop current collector of, e.g., carbon foam, ¶ 0026); and disposing an aqueous electrolyte in physical contact with the at least one layer of 2D TMD material and the composite cathode (inside separator, e.g., ¶ 0009).
Claim(s) 8 and 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen (WO 2020176787 A1) as evidenced by Long et al. (Tuning Nonlinear Optical Absorption Properties of WS2 Nanosheets) (Long), as applied to claim 3, in view of He (CN 111446485 A).
Regarding claims 8 and 9, Chen discloses the method of claim 3.
As noted in claim 3, Chen exemplarily discloses several coating techniques, one of which being an electrochemical method of electroplating (¶ 0047) yet, while further disclosing that such coating is not limited to the listed techniques, fails to explicitly disclose that the electrochemical deposition is performed in an electroless, multiple electrode system, wherein the system comprises a working electrode comprising the Zn metal anode, a reference electrode comprising a Ag or AgCl electrode, and a counter electrode comprising a platinum foil.
He, in teaching a battery (Title), teaches electrodepositing MoS2—a similar 2D TMD material—on a carbon electrode (Abstract), where the carbon electrode is the working electrode, a Pt sheet is the counter electrode, and Ag is the reference electrode (¶ 0016).
He is analogous prior art to the claimed invention because they pertain to the same field of endeavor, namely depositing TMDs on electrodes.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the claimed invention's effective filing date, that if Chen’s WS2 TMD material were to be coated electrochemically, such must necessarily be performed in some manner, and, as demonstrated by He, the skilled artisan would find it obvious to deposit using an electroless, multi-electrode system using Chen’s Zn as working electrode, a Pt sheet/foil as counter electrode, and Ag as reference electrode as an appropriate method with a reasonable expectation of forming a successful anode coating (see also MPEP 2143 (A.)).
Claim(s) 11 and 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen (WO 2020176787 A1) as evidenced by Long et al. (Tuning Nonlinear Optical Absorption Properties of WS2 Nanosheets) (Long), as applied to claim 1, in view of Showak (US 4606869 A) and Lee et al. (WO 2020040695 A1) (Lee).
Regarding claims 11 and 12, Chen discloses the method of claim 1.
Chen further discloses that the Zn anode may be a Zn alloy (¶ 0054) but fails to explicitly disclose that the anode comprises a water-unstable metal.
Showak, in teaching Zn-alloy powders (Abstract), teaches alloying Zn with Li prior to atomization to form spherical Zn powder during anode production (e.g., col. 3, lines 39–41, and col. 7, lines 10 and 11). Showak teaches that the resultant spherical powder generates more uniform porosity distribution in the Zn anode of alkaline cells and, thus, a more uniform distribution of electrolyte and corrosion products, improving battery performance (col. 7, lines 10–14).
Showak is analogous prior art to the claimed invention because they pertain to the same field of endeavor, namely Zn metal anodes.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to alloy Chen’s Zn metal anode with Li—such that the anode would comprise a water-unstable metal (see instant spec., ¶ 0027)—and process such into spherical powder when forming Chen’s anode, as taught by Showak, with the reasonable expectation of generating more uniform porosity distribution in the anode to improve battery performance, as taught by Showak.
Modified Chen further discloses that the deposition may be electrochemical (Chen, ¶ 0047) but, in being unconcerned with the specifics of such, fails to explicitly disclose that the 2D TMD material is deposited using a solution that comprises electrolytes dissolved in one or more of the recited solvents, as well as that the material is deposited from a source comprising one from the recited group.
Lee, in teaching a production method of a battery electrode material involving a Group VI transition metal sulfide precursor (Abstract), teaches that the material may be tungsten sulfide and may be deposited onto a support (see transition metal sulfide deposited onto carbon, e.g., p. 7, lines 12–14). Lee teaches, when depositing the material, employing a solution of a precursor of, e.g., ammonium tetrathiotungstate dissolved in a solvent such as dimethylformamide (end of p. 5/beginning of p. 6 para.).
Lee is analogous prior art to the claimed invention because they pertain to the same field of endeavor, namely 2D-TMD material deposition in batteries.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the claimed invention's effective filing date, that Chen’s TMD such as WS2 must necessarily be prepared for deposition in some manner, and, as demonstrated by Lee, the skilled artisan would find it obvious to prepare the TMD from, e.g., a source of ammonium tetrathiotungstate dissolved in DMF as an appropriate precursor with a reasonable expectation of forming a successful coating composition and eventual coating (MPEP 2143 (A.)).
Thus, modified Chen discloses that the 2D TMD material is deposited using a solution that comprises electrolytes dissolved in dimethylformamide (Lee’s ammonium tetrathiotungstate/DMF solution, which the skilled artisan would recognize would comprise ammonium and tetrathiotungstate ions—i.e., charge carriers and, thus, electrolytes—upon dissolution), as well as that the material is deposited from a source of ammonium tetrathiotungstate (Lee’s ammonium tetrathiotungstate).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1 have been fully considered but are unpersuasive.
Applicant argues that Chen’s tungsten sulfide is inequivalent to the 2D TMD tungsten disulfide, i.e., WS2, as evidenced by Tsang et al. in Appendix A. Examiner respectfully notes that Applicant’s Appendix A was not included with the 11/03/25 remarks, but, more importantly, Examiner has discovered an evidentiary reference from seemingly the same author as Applicant’s reference (the above Long reference, with Tsang as corresponding author), where 2D TMD WS2 is explicitly called tungsten sulfide (Long’s Experimental Section). Thus, Chen appears to render obvious a WS2 2D TMD coating, rendering this argument unpersuasive.
Conclusion
The cited art made of record but not relied upon is considered pertinent to Applicant’s disclosure:
KR 20250155094 A: Zn anode coated with 2D TMD, though this reference, with EFD 10/30/2025, fails to qualify as prior art given instant EFD no later than 03/08/2022.
CN 116845174 A: Zn anode electrodeposited with MoS2 via three-electrode system, but this reference, with EFD 10/03/2023, also fails to qualify as prior art.
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/J.S.M./Examiner, Art Unit 1751
/JONATHAN G LEONG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1751 1/13/2026