DETAILED ACTION
Status of Application
This action is responsive to national-stage application filed 06/01/2023. The concurrently filed preliminary amendment having been entered, claims 1-15 are currently pending and under examination herein.
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 .
Information Disclosure Statement(s)
The information disclosure statement(s) (IDS) filed on 06/01/2023 and 04/04/2025 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97, 1.98 and MPEP § 609, and therefore the information referred to therein has been considered as to the merits. Initialed copies of the IDS are included with the mailing/transmittal of this Office action.
Objection – Abstract
The abstract of the disclosure is objected to because of undue length. A corrected abstract of the disclosure is required and must be presented on a separate sheet, apart from any other text. See MPEP § 608.01(b).
Objection – Claims
Claim 2 is objected to because of the following informalities: the phrase “monomer the same as …” should be amended by inserting –is-- after “monomer” (i.e., “monomer is the same as …”; cf., claim 3).
Claim 6 is objected to because of the following informalities: referring to lines 14 and 35, insertion of –first-- and –second--, respectively, after “the” is recommended to clarify which combining means is being referenced as in fluid connection with the “first” and “second” polymerization reactor train.
Appropriate correction of the aforementioned claims is required.
Claim Rejections – 35 U.S.C. 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 11-12 and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding Claim 11, the claim provides the limitation to “the second olefin monomer source” in line 4. There is no proper and sufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim, nor in any claim upon which claim 11 depends (currently, claim 6).
Regarding Claim 12, the claim provides the limitation to “the second comonomer source” in line 5. There is no proper and sufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim, nor in any claim upon which claim 12 depends (currently, claim 6).
Regarding Claim 15, the claim provides the limitation to “the third combined hydrocarbon stream” in line 6. There is no proper and sufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim, nor in any claim upon which claim 15 depends (currently, claim 6).
Pertinent Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Yeh et al (US 2011/0172375 A1) is cited merely to show analogous art, i.e., art relating to a solution polymerization apparatus having a primary reactor (101) and a second reactor (102) arranged to operate in parallel, with feed blending means provided for each reactor (note Fig. 3 and ¶¶ [0174]-[0182]). The cited art does not teach the present invention, i.e., a continuous polymerization process and a polymerization arrangement as defined in independent claims 1 and 6, respectively.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1, 3-5, 7-10 and 13-14 are allowed. Claims 2 and 6 are allowable in substance.
Claims 11-12 and 15 would be allowable if amended or rewritten to overcome the rejection under 35 U.S.C. 112 set forth in this Office action.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Pending claims are deemed to distinguish over the closest prior art to Brown (WO 2019/086987 A1) and AL-HAJ ALI, et al (WO 2017/108963 A1).
Brown discloses an integrated solution polymerization process comprising:
i. forming a compressed ethylene stream by compressing ethylene in a single compressor;
ii. dividing said compressed ethylene stream into a first ethylene feed stream and a second ethylene feed stream;
iii. injecting said first ethylene feed stream, a hydrocarbon solvent, a first catalyst system, optionally one or more C3 to C12 alpha olefins and optionally hydrogen into a first solution polymerization reactor train operating at a first temperature and first pressure to produce a first ethylene polymer solution;
iv. injecting said second ethylene feed stream, a hydrocarbon solvent, a second catalyst system, one or more C3 to C12 alpha olefins and optionally hydrogen into a second solution polymerization reactor train operating at a second temperature and second pressure to produce a second ethylene polymer solution; v. directing said first ethylene polymer solution to a first polymer separation unit operation to produce a first liquid stream containing said first solvent and unreacted monomer and a first crude ethylene polymer;
vi. directing said second ethylene polymer solution to a second polymer separation unit operation to produce a second liquid stream containing said second solvent and unreacted monomer and a second crude ethylene polymer;
vii. directing said first liquid stream and said second liquid stream to a single distillation unit;
viii. finishing said first crude ethylene polymer in a finishing operation containing a pellet extruder and a pellet stripper; and
ix. finishing said second crude ethylene polymer in a second finishing operation containing a devolatilizing extruder, with the proviso that said second finishing operation does not include a pellet stripper.
(Brown, page 1, line 9 et seq.)
Present claim 1 distinguishes over Brown by limitations to a continuous solution polymerization process comprising, inter alia, a first primary recycling step and a first secondary recycling step (see lines 15-16, 19-20) and a corresponding second primary recycling step and second secondary recycling step (see lines 35-36, 40-41). Present claim 6 distinguishes over Brown by limitations to a polymerization arrangement comprising, inter alia, a first primary recycling means and a first secondary recycling means (see lines 22-24, 29-31) and a corresponding second primary recycling means and second secondary recycling means (see lines 44-46, 51-53). Brown fails to teach or adequately suggest the claimed sequence of primary/secondary recycling steps or primary/secondary recycling means as used in the present invention.
AL-HAJ ALI, et al disclose a process for recovering hydrocarbons in a solution polymerization process (page 2, lines 5-8). In one embodiment, the process can comprise a parallel polymerization reactor configuration with two or more polymerization steps in two or more polymerization reactors in parallel configuration as illustrated in Figure 2 (reproduced below).
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In reference to Figure 2, AL-HAJ ALI, et al describe (see page 26, lines 1-16) that a second polymerization reactor (14) is operated parallel to a first polymerization reactor (2). Monomer, comonomer and solvent are introduced to the second feed vessel (13) and passed through the line (41) to the second polymerization reactor (14). A first stream of the second solution is withdrawn from the second polymerization reactor (14) and passed through the line (42), the heat exchanger (15) and the line (43) to the fourth separator (16). The fourth vapor stream and the fourth concentrated solution stream are withdrawn from the fourth separator. The fourth vapor stream is passed to the fourth fractionator (18) through the line (46). The fourth overhead stream and the fourth bottom stream are withdrawn from the fourth fractionator (18). The fourth overhead stream is recovered as the fourth recycle stream and is recycled through the line (48) to the second feed vessel (13). The fourth bottom stream from the fourth fractionator (18) is sent back to the fourth separator (16) through the lines (47) and (48). Suitably, at least a part of the second bottom stream is combined with the fourth bottom stream. The fourth concentrated solution stream from the fourth separator (16) is passed through the line (44), the pump (17), the lines (45) and (28), the heat exchanger (7) and the line (29) to the second separator (8).
Present claim 1 distinguishes over AL-HAJ ALI, et al at least by the limitation to a continuous solution polymerization process comprising, inter alia, recycling the second secondary hydrocarbon stream to the second combining step in a second secondary recycling step (see lines 35-36). Present claim 6 distinguishes over AL-HAJ ALI, et al at least by the limitation to a polymerization arrangement comprising, inter alia, a second secondary recycling means in fluid connection with the second secondary separation device and the second combining means for recycling the second secondary hydrocarbon stream to the second combining means (see lines 51-53). AL-HAJ ALI, et al fail to teach or adequately suggest the claimed second secondary recycling step or second secondary recycling means of the present invention.
Correspondence
Any inquiry concerning this communication should be directed to Examiner F. M. Teskin whose telephone number is (571) 272-1116. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM - 5:30 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner's supervisor, Robert Jones, can be reached at (571) 270-7733. The appropriate fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) Form at https://www.uspto.gov/patents/uspto-automated- interview-request-air-form.
/FRED M TESKIN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1762
/FMTeskin/02-26-26