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 Amendment
The amendment filed December 16th, 2025 has been entered. Claims 1-4, 8-13, 15-17, and 19-20 remain pending in the application.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see Applicant Arguments/Remarks, filed December 16th, 2025, with respect to the rejection of claims 1-3, 5, 8-16, and 18-22 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sadiq and further in view of Ingram have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground of rejection is made in view of U.S. Patent Publication No. US 2022/0134307 A1 to Sadiq et al., and further in view of U.S. Patent Publication No. US 2022/0056064 A1 to Qazvini et al. and U.S. Patent No. US 10875769 B2 to Ingram et al.
Applicant’s arguments, see Applicant Arguments/Remarks, filed December 16th, 2025, with respect to the rejection of claims 4 and 17 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Alcaraz-Calderon and further in view of Ingram and Sadiq have been fully considered but are not persuasive. Applicant asserts that there is no motivation to replace the conventional system of Alcaraz-Calderon with the MOF-based method of Sadiq because the method of Sadiq is specifically designed for capturing a target gas from an atmospheric gas and not an NGCC exhaust gas. The Examiner respectfully disagrees. Although the method as taught by Sadiq can be used for capturing a target gas from an atmospheric gas, Sadiq also discloses that such a method can be used for capturing a target gas from an atmospheric gas or flue gas or natural gas (¶0130 “A further application of the apparatus and method of the present invention is a direct air capture (DAC) of O2, N2, or a targeted gas from ambient air or flue gas or natural gas. For example, the present invention can be used to capture CO2 from flue gas or natural gas.”). However, as claims 4 and 17 depend upon claims 1 and 16, the initial rejection has been withdrawn and a new ground of rejection is made in view of Alcaraz-Calderon, A. M. et al. Natural gas combined cycle with exhaust gas recirculation and CO2 capture at part-load operation, Journal of the Energy Institute, Vol. 92 (April 2019), pp. 370-381, and further in view of U.S. Patent Publication No. US 2022/0134307 A1 to Sadiq et al., U.S. Patent Publication No. US 2022/0056064 A1 to Qazvini et al. and U.S. Patent No. US 10875769 B2 to Ingram et al.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 1-3, 8-13, 15-16, and 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Publication No. US 2022/0134307 A1 to Sadiq et al. (hereinafter referred to as Sadiq), and further in view of U.S. Patent Publication No. US 2022/0056064 A1 to Qazvini et al. (hereinafter referred to as Qazvini) and U.S. Patent No. US 10875769 B2 to Ingram et al. (hereinafter referred to as Ingram).
Regarding claim 1, Sadiq teaches a method for capturing CO2 from a gas stream containing approximately 400 ppm to 6% of CO2 using a metal organic framework (MOF) based physisorbent CO2 concentrator (¶0232 “Dry (containing 200 ppm H2O and 450-500 ppm CO2) and wet (containing 1.5-1.8% H2O and 450-500 ppm CO2) feed was used to evaluate the performance of our MOF for direct air capture.”; See also Fig. 1), comprising: pretreating a MOF material under airflow or vacuum (¶0184 “An activation step is then undertaken after application of the composite coating 112 to the planar sheet 110 … In some embodiments, this is achieved by applying heat and vacuum.”); introducing a gas stream into the CO2 concentrator which comprises the pretreated MOF material (¶0157 “The adsorption chamber 54 comprises a housing enclosing an adsorption element 53 comprising at least one substrate coated with an adsorptive composite coating that comprises at least 50 wt % metal organic framework … The adsorption chamber 54 includes an inlet 55 through which feed atmospheric gas 50 can flow to the adsorption element 53”); capturing, with the CO2 concentrator, CO2 from the gas stream to generate a CO2-free stream in the CO2 concentrator (¶0156 “As shown in Fig. 1, a single CO2 adsorption module”; see also Fig. 1); discharging the CO2-free stream from the CO2 concentrator into the atmosphere (Fig. 1, adsorbate stripped gas 57); stopping the introduction of the gas stream into the CO2 concentrator when the pretreated MOF material becomes saturated with CO2 (¶0198 “The adsorption apparatus 200 is operated on a repetitive adsorption and desorption cycle, running through multiple cycles of: (A) flowing a gaseous feed stream through the inlet 214A and across the adsorption element 100 of the apparatus 200 such that the adsorptive composite coating adsorbs a selected gaseous adsorbate from the gaseous feed stream; followed by (B) heating the adsorptive composite coating … so as to release at least a portion of the gaseous adsorbate therefrom into a product fluid flow.”); regenerating the CO2 concentrator from the saturated MOF material by introducing hot air, hot nitrogen, vacuum, or a combination thereof, thereby generating a CO2-rich stream (¶0122 “In other embodiments, a heat exchanger setup, for example where the heat is fed in by a fluid such as hot water or gas can be used to heat the adsorptive composite coating.” ; ¶0198 “(B) heating the adsorptive composite coating by applying a current through the spaced apart electrodes 120, thereby generating heat within resistive heating material of the planar sheet 110 so as to release at least a portion of the gaseous adsorbate therefrom into a product fluid flow.”); and utilizing the regenerated CO2 concentrator for future capture of CO2 (¶0198). Sadiq fails to teach wherein the stream of the hot air or the hot nitrogen or the combination thereof is introduced to the CO2 concentrator at a temperature of approximately 80-150 ⁰C, and wherein the hot air, the hot nitrogen, or the combination thereof exit the CO2 concentrator as a part of the CO2-rich gas stream and diverting the generated CO2-rich stream for direct purification or mixing with a stream of industrial exhaust with similar CO2 concentrations for subsequent purification.
Qazvini teaches a method for capturing CO2 using a MOF based physisorbent (¶0001 “The present invention relates to porous materials for adsorbing guest species, and more specifically relates to metal-organic frameworks for adsorbing carbon dioxide.”), wherein said MOFs can be regenerated using a heated purge gas (¶0066 “In one example, the MOF can be regenerated using temperature and/or pressure swings. In another example, the MOF can desorb the first species by heating (for example, to between about 20⁰ C and about 130⁰ C), or in vacuo, or by purging with a flow of dry air, or a combination of two or more of the aforementioned methods.”).
Sadiq and Qazvini are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of cyclic adsorption and desorption of CO2 using MOF adsorbents. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method as taught by Sadiq to include the heated purge step as taught by Qazvini to both desorb captured CO2 and regenerate the MOF within one step. A consolidation of steps (desorption and regeneration) would result in a more efficient system. Furthermore, such a substitution of regeneration methods would result in a predictable result (regeneration of the MOF and desorption of the CO2); a simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain predictable results supports a prima facie case of obviousness. See MPEP § 2143(I)(B).
As to the step of diverting the CO2-rich stream for direction purification or mixing with a stream of industrial exhaust with similar CO2 concentrations for subsequent purification, Ingram teaches the use of absorbent beds for treating a CO2-comprising fluid (Abstract) that, after separation in a first bed, the CO2-rich stream is further purified in a second absorbent bed (Col. 2, lines 53-57 “the hydrogenated Claus tail gas and the first CO2-rich offgas are treated in a second absorber at a pressure of 1 to 4 bar with a second substream of the regenerated H2S-selective absorbent to obtain a second CO2-rich offgas”). Running the already CO2-rich stream through a second bed will further purify the gas and ensure there are no residual impurities remaining, allowing for the resulting CO2-rich stream to be used in other industrial processes.
Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of CO2 capture via separation beds. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the additional purification steps as taught by Ingram into the method as taught by Sadiq and Qazvini to ensure all impurities are removed, resulting in a higher-purity CO2 gas.
Regarding claim 2, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram teach a method as applied to claim 1 above. Sadiq further teaches wherein the CO2 concentrator comprises the pretreated MOF with a binder in a closed module (¶0014 “an adsorptive composite coating that comprises or consists of at least 50 wt % metal organic framework and at least one binder”) and one or more gas valves configured to manipulate the flow of the gas stream inside the CO2 concentrator (¶0194 “Flow through inlet 214A and outlet 214B are controlled by ball valves 215A and 215B respectively.”).
Regarding claim 3, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram teach a method as applied to claim 1 above. Sadiq further teaches wherein the binder is an organic polymer or an inorganic binder (¶0044 “The binder can be made of a single polymer or a blend of two or more polymers.” ; ¶0045 discusses the use of cellulosic polymers).
Regarding claim 5, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram teach a method as applied to claim 1 above. Sadiq further teaches wherein the gas stream is air (¶0130 “A further application of the apparatus and method of the present invention is a direct air capture (DAC) of O2, N2 or a targeted gas from ambient air or flue gas or natural gas.”).
Regarding claim 8, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram teach a method as applied to claim 1 above. Sadiq further teaches wherein the MOF material is KAUST-7 (¶0076 “Examples of metal organic frameworks that may be suitable for use in the present invention include … NbOFFIVE-1-Ni”, NbOFFIVE-1-Ni is also known as KAUST-7).
Regarding claim 9, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram teach a method as applied to claim 1 above. Sadiq further teaches the step of cooling the gas stream to approximately 20-25⁰C before introduction into the CO2 concentrator (¶0128 “In some embodiments, the gaseous feed stream undergoes at least one cooling process prior to passing over the at least one adsorption element.”; ¶0249 “For the adsorption run, air with CO2 concentrations of 400-500 ppm and H2O concentration of 1000 ppm at 25⁰C was fed into each adsorption chamber”).
Regarding claim 10, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram teach a method as applied to claim 1 above. Sadiq further teaches wherein the MOF material is in the form of pellets, laminates, or other structured forms (¶0133 “Fig. 2 illustrates one embodiment of the adsorption element according to the present invention, showing (a) a sheet form of the substrate”).
Regarding claim 11, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram teach a method as applied to claim 1 above. Sadiq further teaches wherein the MOF material is pretreated at a temperature in the range of approximately 60-150⁰C under dynamic vacuum or dry inert gas (¶0216 “A further activation step is undertaken after application of the composite coating 112 to the planar sheet 110 … This is achieved by heating the composite coating 112 in a 1500 SCCM flow of helium gas at 100⁰C for 24 hours.”).
Regarding claim 12, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram teach a method as applied to claim 1 above. Sadiq further teaches wherein the pretreatment of the MOF material removes previously adsorbed molecules (Claim 62 of Sadiq “an activated state in which the arrangement is configured to heat, apply a reduced pressure or a combination thereof to the adsorptive composite coating to desorb at least a portion of the adsorbed target gaseous adsorbate from the adsorptive composite coating.”).
Regarding claim 13, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram teach a method as applied to claim 1 above. Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram are silent on the concentration of the generated CO2-rich stream.
However, Sadiq does teach that the output purity of CO2 can vary depending on time (Fig. 10), with the range of 1-50% occurring approximately between 0-25 minutes. Furthermore, Sadiq teaches the use of ball valves to control flow through the inlet and outlet (¶0194) as well as CO2 sensors to monitor the purity of the CO2 generated during the regeneration (desorption) process (¶0249 “In all scenarios, the modules were equipped with CO2 sensors to monitor the purity of CO2 generated during the regeneration process.”). The claimed limitations set forth in claim 13 of the instant application are therefore not patentably distinct over Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram.
Regarding claim 15, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram teach a method as applied to claim 1 above. Ingram further teaches wherein purification of the CO2-rich stream comprises purifying the CO2-rich stream to pure CO2 (Col. 15, lines 31-34 “The absorbent removes hydrogen sulfide by absorption from the gas; this affords essentially pure carbon dioxide which is conducted out of the plant via a gas line 2.15.”). Sadiq and Ingram are both silent on the concentration of the generated CO2-rich stream.
However, Sadiq does teach that the output purity of CO2 can vary depending on time (Fig. 10), with the range of 1-10% occurring approximately between 0-15 minutes. Furthermore, Sadiq teaches the use of ball valves to control flow through the inlet and outlet (¶0194) as well as CO2 sensors to monitor the purity of the CO2 generated during the regeneration (desorption) process (¶0249 “In all scenarios, the modules were equipped with CO2 sensors to monitor the purity of CO2 generated during the regeneration process.”). The claimed limitations set forth in claim 15 of the instant application are therefore not patentably distinct over Sadiq and Ingram.
Regarding claim 16, Sadiq teaches a method for capturing CO2 from a gas stream containing approximately 400 ppm to 6% of CO2 using multiple metal organic framework (MOF) based physisorbent CO2 concentrator (¶0232 “Dry (containing 200 ppm H2O and 450-500 ppm CO2) and wet (containing 1.5-1.8% H2O and 450-500 ppm CO2) feed was used to evaluate the performance of our MOF for direct air capture.”; See also Fig. 1; ¶0111 “The apparatus can include a single housing or multiple housings enclosing adsorption elements”), comprising: pretreating a MOF material under airflow or vacuum (¶0184 “An activation step is then undertaken after application of the composite coating 112 to the planar sheet 110 … In some embodiments, this is achieved by applying heat and vacuum.”); introducing a gas stream into a first CO2 concentrator which comprises the pretreated MOF material (¶0157 “The adsorption chamber 54 comprises a housing enclosing an adsorption element 53 comprising at least one substrate coated with an adsorptive composite coating that comprises at least 50 wt % metal organic framework … The adsorption chamber 54 includes an inlet 55 through which feed atmospheric gas 50 can flow to the adsorption element 53”); capturing, with the first CO2 concentrator, CO2 from the gas stream to generate a CO2-free stream in the first CO2 concentrator (¶0156 “As shown in Fig. 1, a single CO2 adsorption module”; see also Fig. 1); discharging the CO2-free stream from the first CO2 concentrator into the atmosphere (Fig. 1, adsorbate stripped gas 57); substituting a second CO2 concentrator comprising a pretreated MOF material for the first CO2 concentrator when the pretreated MOF material of the first CO2 concentrator becomes saturated with CO2 (¶0111 “As detailed below, the adsorption elements in the three housings can be operated in different sections of the adsorption and regeneration cycle to produce a continuous flow of the product adsorbate gas.”); regenerating the first CO2 concentrator from the saturated MOF material by introducing hot air, hot nitrogen, vacuum, or a combination thereof, thereby generating a CO2-rich stream (¶0198 “The adsorption apparatus 200 is operated on a repetitive adsorption and desorption cycle, running through multiple cycles of: (A) flowing a gaseous feed stream through the inlet 214A and across the adsorption element 100 of the apparatus 200 such that the adsorptive composite coating adsorbs a selected gaseous adsorbate from the gaseous feed stream; followed by (B) heating the adsorptive composite coating … so as to release at least a portion of the gaseous adsorbate therefrom into a product fluid flow.”); and recycling the regenerated first CO2 concentrator for future capture of CO2 (¶0198). Sadiq fails to teach wherein the stream of the hot air or the hot nitrogen or the combination thereof is introduced to the CO2 concentrator at a temperature of approximately 80-150 ⁰C, and wherein the hot air, the hot nitrogen, or the combination thereof exit the CO2 concentrator as a part of the CO2-rich gas stream and diverting the generated CO2-rich stream for direct purification or mixing with a stream of industrial exhaust with similar CO2 concentrations for subsequent purification.
Qazvini teaches a method for capturing CO2 using a MOF based physisorbent (¶0001 “The present invention relates to porous materials for adsorbing guest species, and more specifically relates to metal-organic frameworks for adsorbing carbon dioxide.”), wherein said MOFs can be regenerated using a heated purge gas (¶0066 “In one example, the MOF can be regenerated using temperature and/or pressure swings. In another example, the MOF can desorb the first species by heating (for example, to between about 20⁰ C and about 130⁰ C), or in vacuo, or by purging with a flow of dry air, or a combination of two or more of the aforementioned methods.”).
Sadiq and Qazvini are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of cyclic adsorption and desorption of CO2 using MOF adsorbents. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method as taught by Sadiq to include the heated purge step as taught by Qazvini to both desorb captured CO2 and regenerate the MOF within one step. A consolidation of steps (desorption and regeneration) would result in a more efficient system. Furthermore, such a substitution of regeneration methods would result in a predictable result (regeneration of the MOF and desorption of the CO2); a simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain predictable results supports a prima facie case of obviousness. See MPEP § 2143(I)(B).
As to the step of diverting the CO2-rich stream for direction purification or mixing with a stream of industrial exhaust with similar CO2 concentrations for subsequent purification, Ingram teaches the use of absorbent beds for treating a CO2-comprising fluid (Abstract) that, after separation in a first bed, the CO2-rich stream is further purified in a second absorbent bed (Col. 2, lines 53-57 “the hydrogenated Claus tail gas and the first CO2-rich offgas are treated in a second absorber at a pressure of 1 to 4 bar with a second substream of the regenerated H2S-selective absorbent to obtain a second CO2-rich offgas”). Running the already CO2-rich stream through a second bed will further purify the gas and ensure there are no residual impurities remaining, allowing for the resulting CO2-rich stream to be used in other industrial processes.
Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of CO2 capture via separation beds. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the additional purification steps as taught by Ingram into the method as taught by Sadiq and Qazvini to ensure all impurities are removed, resulting in a higher-purity CO2 gas.
Regarding claim 19, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram teach a method as applied to claim 16 above. Sadiq further teaches wherein the MOF material is KAUST-7 (¶0076 “Examples of metal organic frameworks that may be suitable for use in the present invention include … NbOFFIVE-1-Ni”, NbOFFIVE-1-Ni is also known as KAUST-7).
Regarding claim 20, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram teach a method as applied to claim 16 above. Sadiq further teaches wherein the MOF material is pretreated at a temperature in the range of approximately 60-150⁰C under dynamic vacuum or dry inert gas(¶0216 “A further activation step is undertaken after application of the composite coating 112 to the planar sheet 110 … This is achieved by heating the composite coating 112 in a 1500 SCCM flow of helium gas at 100⁰C for 24 hours.”); and further comprising the step of cooling the gas stream to approximately 20-25⁰C before introduction into the first CO2 concentrator (¶0128 “In some embodiments, the gaseous feed stream undergoes at least one cooling process prior to passing over the at least one adsorption element.”; ¶0249 “For the adsorption run, air with CO2 concentrations of 400-500 ppm and H2O concentration of 1000 ppm at 25⁰C was fed into each adsorption chamber”).
Claims 4 and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Alcaraz-Calderon, A. M. et al. Natural gas combined cycle with exhaust gas recirculation and CO2 capture at part-load operation, Journal of the Energy Institute, Vol. 92 (April 2019), pp. 370-381 (hereinafter referred to as Alcaraz-Calderon), and further in view of U.S. Patent Publication No. US 2022/0134307 A1 to Sadiq et al. (hereinafter referred to as Sadiq), U.S. Patent Publication No. US 2022/0056064 A1 to Qazvini et al. (hereinafter referred to as Qazvini), and U.S. Patent No. US 10875769 B2 to Ingram et al. (hereinafter referred to as Ingram).
Regarding claim 4, Alcaraz-Calderon teaches the use of a CO2 capture plant in combination with the operation of a natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) comprising 2-6% CO2, 10-13% O2, and 2-10% H2O vapor (Table 2 shows the mole percent composition of the flue gas to be 11% O2, 4% CO2, and 9% H2O). Alcaraz-Calderon is silent on the method steps of operating such a CO2 capture plant.
Sadiq teaches a method for capturing CO2 from a gas stream containing approximately 400 ppm to 6% of CO2 using a metal organic framework (MOF) based physisorbent CO2 concentrator (¶0232 “Dry (containing 200 ppm H2O and 450-500 ppm CO2) and wet (containing 1.5-1.8% H2O and 450-500 ppm CO2) feed was used to evaluate the performance of our MOF for direct air capture.”; See also Fig. 1), comprising: pretreating a MOF material under airflow or vacuum (¶0184 “An activation step is then undertaken after application of the composite coating 112 to the planar sheet 110 … In some embodiments, this is achieved by applying heat and vacuum.”); introducing a gas stream into the CO2 concentrator which comprises the pretreated MOF material (¶0157 “The adsorption chamber 54 comprises a housing enclosing an adsorption element 53 comprising at least one substrate coated with an adsorptive composite coating that comprises at least 50 wt % metal organic framework … The adsorption chamber 54 includes an inlet 55 through which feed atmospheric gas 50 can flow to the adsorption element 53”); capturing, with the CO2 concentrator, CO2 from the gas stream to generate a CO2-free stream in the CO2 concentrator (¶0156 “As shown in Fig. 1, a single CO2 adsorption module”; see also Fig. 1); discharging the CO2-free stream from the CO2 concentrator into the atmosphere (Fig. 1, adsorbate stripped gas 57); stopping the introduction of the gas stream into the CO2 concentrator when the pretreated MOF material becomes saturated with CO2 (¶0198 “The adsorption apparatus 200 is operated on a repetitive adsorption and desorption cycle, running through multiple cycles of: (A) flowing a gaseous feed stream through the inlet 214A and across the adsorption element 100 of the apparatus 200 such that the adsorptive composite coating adsorbs a selected gaseous adsorbate from the gaseous feed stream; followed by (B) heating the adsorptive composite coating … so as to release at least a portion of the gaseous adsorbate therefrom into a product fluid flow.”); regenerating the CO2 concentrator from the saturated MOF material by introducing hot air, hot nitrogen, vacuum, or a combination thereof, thereby generating a CO2-rich stream (¶0122 “In other embodiments, a heat exchanger setup, for example where the heat is fed in by a fluid such as hot water or gas can be used to heat the adsorptive composite coating.” ; ¶0198 “(B) heating the adsorptive composite coating by applying a current through the spaced apart electrodes 120, thereby generating heat within resistive heating material of the planar sheet 110 so as to release at least a portion of the gaseous adsorbate therefrom into a product fluid flow.”); and utilizing the regenerated CO2 concentrator for future capture of CO2 (¶0198). Sadiq fails to teach wherein the stream of the hot air or the hot nitrogen or the combination thereof is introduced to the CO2 concentrator at a temperature of approximately 80-150 ⁰C, and wherein the hot air, the hot nitrogen, or the combination thereof exit the CO2 concentrator as a part of the CO2-rich gas stream and diverting the generated CO2-rich stream for direct purification or mixing with a stream of industrial exhaust with similar CO2 concentrations for subsequent purification.
Qazvini teaches a method for capturing CO2 using a MOF based physisorbent (¶0001 “The present invention relates to porous materials for adsorbing guest species, and more specifically relates to metal-organic frameworks for adsorbing carbon dioxide.”), wherein said MOFs can be regenerated using a heated purge gas (¶0066 “In one example, the MOF can be regenerated using temperature and/or pressure swings. In another example, the MOF can desorb the first species by heating (for example, to between about 20⁰ C and about 130⁰ C), or in vacuo, or by purging with a flow of dry air, or a combination of two or more of the aforementioned methods.”).
Sadiq and Qazvini are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of cyclic adsorption and desorption of CO2 using MOF adsorbents. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method as taught by Sadiq to include the heated purge step as taught by Qazvini to both desorb captured CO2 and regenerate the MOF within one step. A consolidation of steps (desorption and regeneration) would result in a more efficient system. Furthermore, such a substitution of regeneration methods would result in a predictable result (regeneration of the MOF and desorption of the CO2); a simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain predictable results supports a prima facie case of obviousness. See MPEP § 2143(I)(B).
As to the step of diverting the CO2-rich stream for direction purification or mixing with a stream of industrial exhaust with similar CO2 concentrations for subsequent purification, Ingram teaches the use of absorbent beds for treating a CO2-comprising fluid (Abstract) that, after separation in a first bed, the CO2-rich stream is further purified in a second absorbent bed (Col. 2, lines 53-57 “the hydrogenated Claus tail gas and the first CO2-rich offgas are treated in a second absorber at a pressure of 1 to 4 bar with a second substream of the regenerated H2S-selective absorbent to obtain a second CO2-rich offgas”). Running the already CO2-rich stream through a second bed will further purify the gas and ensure there are no residual impurities remaining, allowing for the resulting CO2-rich stream to be used in other industrial processes.
Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of CO2 capture via separation beds. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the additional purification steps as taught by Ingram into the method as taught by Sadiq and Qazvini to ensure all impurities are removed, resulting in a higher-purity CO2 gas.
Alcaraz-Calderon, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of CO2 capture in which the gas stream is from the combustion of natural gas. It therefore would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention that the natural gas combined cycle as taught by Alcaraz-Calderon could be modified to include the method for CO2 capture as taught by Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram in order to efficiently capture the CO2 of the flue gas for use or sale as pure CO2.
Regarding claim 17, Alcaraz-Calderon teaches the use of a CO2 capture plant in combination with the operation of a natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) comprising 2-6% CO2, 10-13% O2, and 2-10% H2O vapor (Table 2 shows the mole percent composition of the flue gas to be 11% O2, 4% CO2, and 9% H2O). Alcaraz-Calderon is silent on the method steps of operating such a CO2 capture plant.
Sadiq teaches a method for capturing CO2 from a gas stream containing approximately 400 ppm to 6% of CO2 (¶0232 “Dry (containing 200 ppm H2O and 450-500 ppm CO2) and wet (containing 1.5-1.8% H2O and 450-500 ppm CO2) feed was used to evaluate the performance of our MOF for direct air capture.”; See also Fig. 1) using multiple metal organic framework (MOF) based physisorbent CO2 concentrators (¶0111 “The apparatus can include a single housing or multiple housings enclosing adsorption elements”), comprising: pretreating a MOF material under airflow or vacuum (¶0184 “An activation step is then undertaken after application of the composite coating 112 to the planar sheet 110 … In some embodiments, this is achieved by applying heat and vacuum.”); introducing a gas stream into a first CO2 concentrator which comprises the pretreated MOF material (¶0157 “The adsorption chamber 54 comprises a housing enclosing an adsorption element 53 comprising at least one substrate coated with an adsorptive composite coating that comprises at least 50 wt % metal organic framework … The adsorption chamber 54 includes an inlet 55 through which feed atmospheric gas 50 can flow to the adsorption element 53”); capturing, with the first CO2 concentrator, CO2 from the gas stream to generate a CO2-free stream in the first CO2 concentrator (¶0156 “As shown in Fig. 1, a single CO2 adsorption module”; see also Fig. 1); discharging the CO2-free stream from the first CO2 concentrator into the atmosphere (Fig. 1, adsorbate stripped gas 57); substituting a second CO2 concentrator comprising a pretreated MOF material for the first CO2 concentrator when the pretreated MOF material of the first CO2 concentrator becomes saturated with CO2 (¶0111 “As detailed below, the adsorption elements in the three housings can be operated in different sections of the adsorption and regeneration cycle to produce a continuous flow of the produce adsorbate gas.”); regenerating the first CO2 concentrator from the saturated MOF material by introducing hot air, hot nitrogen, vacuum, or a combination thereof, thereby generating a CO2-rich stream (¶0198 “(B) heating the adsorptive composite coating by applying a current through the spaced apart electrodes 120, thereby generating heat within resistive heating material of the planar sheet 110 so as to release at least a portion of the gaseous adsorbate therefrom into a product fluid flow.”); and recycling the regenerated CO2 concentrator for future capture of CO2 (¶0198). Sadiq fails to teach wherein the stream of the hot air or the hot nitrogen or the combination thereof is introduced to the CO2 concentrator at a temperature of approximately 80-150 ⁰C, and wherein the hot air, the hot nitrogen, or the combination thereof exit the CO2 concentrator as a part of the CO2-rich gas stream and diverting the generated CO2-rich stream for direct purification or mixing with a stream of industrial exhaust with similar CO2 concentrations for subsequent purification.
Qazvini teaches a method for capturing CO2 using a MOF based physisorbent (¶0001 “The present invention relates to porous materials for adsorbing guest species, and more specifically relates to metal-organic frameworks for adsorbing carbon dioxide.”), wherein said MOFs can be regenerated using a heated purge gas (¶0066 “In one example, the MOF can be regenerated using temperature and/or pressure swings. In another example, the MOF can desorb the first species by heating (for example, to between about 20⁰ C and about 130⁰ C), or in vacuo, or by purging with a flow of dry air, or a combination of two or more of the aforementioned methods.”).
Sadiq and Qazvini are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of cyclic adsorption and desorption of CO2 using MOF adsorbents. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method as taught by Sadiq to include the heated purge step as taught by Qazvini to both desorb captured CO2 and regenerate the MOF within one step. A consolidation of steps (desorption and regeneration) would result in a more efficient system. Furthermore, such a substitution of regeneration methods would result in a predictable result (regeneration of the MOF and desorption of the CO2); a simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain predictable results supports a prima facie case of obviousness. See MPEP § 2143(I)(B).
As to the step of diverting the CO2-rich stream for direction purification or mixing with a stream of industrial exhaust with similar CO2 concentrations for subsequent purification, Ingram teaches the use of absorbent beds for treating a CO2-comprising fluid (Abstract) that, after separation in a first bed, the CO2-rich stream is further purified in a second absorbent bed (Col. 2, lines 53-57 “the hydrogenated Claus tail gas and the first CO2-rich offgas are treated in a second absorber at a pressure of 1 to 4 bar with a second substream of the regenerated H2S-selective absorbent to obtain a second CO2-rich offgas”). Running the already CO2-rich stream through a second bed will further purify the gas and ensure there are no residual impurities remaining, allowing for the resulting CO2-rich stream to be used in other industrial processes.
Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of CO2 capture via separation beds. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the additional purification steps as taught by Ingram into the method as taught by Sadiq and Qazvini to ensure all impurities are removed, resulting in a higher-purity CO2 gas.
Alcaraz-Calderon, Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of CO2 capture in which the gas stream is from the combustion of natural gas. It therefore would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention that the natural gas combined cycle as taught by Alcaraz-Calderon could be modified to include the method for CO2 capture as taught by Sadiq, Qazvini, and Ingram in order to efficiently capture the CO2 of the flue gas for use or sale as pure CO2.
Conclusion
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/RACHEL MARIE SLAUGOVSKY/Examiner, Art Unit 1776
/Jennifer Dieterle/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1776