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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of claims 1-11, 14, 20 and 24 in the reply filed on 5/9/25 is acknowledged.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-11, 14, 20 and 21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by, or in the alternative, under 35 USC 103 as being unpatentable over, as a commercially available material, with evidence from Wang et al, Effect of molecular weight on rolled high density polyethylene: 1. Structure, morphology and anisotropic mechanical behavior, Polymer, 1993, Volume 34, Number 13, and Celanese product brochure.
Claims are directed at HDPE, and further limited by molecular weight range and density, and the source of the ethylene monomer.
At the outset, the examiner submits that claims are for a product, HDPE. The process of how it is made or the sources of raw materials do not limit a claim for a product. MPEP 2113.
HDPE is well-known and has been commercially available for many decades, and is therefore not a patentable product. The range of molecular weight and density in the claims are the properties of HDPE. Wang is cited as a source reference for the properties of HDPE. Density of HDPE can be seen in Fig. 1. Molecular weights – see the experimental section.
Further, HDPE resin powder is available commercially. The details of density, mol weight, bulk density and D50 are available online, see for example, the Celanese brochure.
Claim(s) 1-11, 14, 20 and 21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by, or in the alternative, under 35 USC 103 as being unpatentable over, Siracus et al, Bio-Polyethylene (Bio-PE), Bio-Polypropylene (Bio-PP) and Bio-Poly(ethylene terephthalate) (Bio-PET): Recent Developments in Bio-Based Polymers Analogous to Petroleum-Derived Ones for Packaging and Engineering Applications, Polymers 2020, 12, 1641; doi:10.3390/polym12081641, with evidence from Wang cited in rejection 1.
This reference teaches that bio-based polyethylene including HDPE is known since the 2000. See abstract and section 3, Bio-Based Polyethylene. Regarding the density and molecular weight, see Wang as described in rejection 1 above. As shown therein, source of ethylene is not a patentable limitation for HDPE. Nonetheless, Siracus teaches the claimed subject matter, except for the properties of HDPE.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 11/14/25 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Arguments citing isotopic signatures, radiocarbon content or stable isotope ratio are not persuasive: there is no evidence for such differences. Notwithstanding, it is well-known that ethylene would polymerize to polyethylene, irrespective of these differences. Wang was cited for the characteristics of HDPE, not for the source of ethylene.
The source of ethylene is only process relates. See MPEP 2113 for product by process claims.
Regarding whether polyethylene having a different C14 content is patentable is moot, since Siracus does teach HDPE from bio-sources.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KRISHNAN S MENON whose telephone number is (571)272-1143. The examiner can normally be reached Flexible, but generally Monday-Friday: 8:00AM-4:30PM.
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/KRISHNAN S MENON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1777