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 of Group I (Claims 1-2) in the reply filed on 4/2/2026 is acknowledged. Because applicant did not distinctly and specifically point out the supposed errors in the restriction requirement, the election has been treated as an election without traverse (MPEP § 818.01(a)).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. The phase “wherein the yellow mud contains organic matter derived from clay, silt, dead branches and fallen leaves, wherein main chemical components of the yellow mud comprise silica, aluminum oxide, metal oxides, and organic substance, and the organic substances comprises humic acid, nitrogen, phosphorus and sulfur;” lacks literal description support and is not recited in the specification.
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 1-2 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.
In claim 1, lines 1-2, the phrase “A recyclable hydrogen production material, prepared from raw materials, the raw materials in percentage by mass comprising:” is indefinite because it is unclear physical characteristics of the product are required. The claim is drawn to “[a] recyclable hydrogen production material”, but all the limitations of the claim are for the raw materials for making the product not the actual product itself. Thus, it is unclear what is required in the actual claimed product and its composition.
Moreover, the claim contemplates some process of making the product but does not recite the process steps that are performed to make the product. The claim is not a product-by-process claim because there are no recited product-by-process steps. Thus, it is unclear how the final product is achieved from the raw materials.
Finally, claim 1 recites a list of raw materials, but it is not clear whether these raw materials are part of the final product. Thus, it is unclear whether a product possesses the composition of raw materials recited in claim 1 are actually required by the claim.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 6/30/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that the amendments to the claims overcome the indefiniteness rejections. In response, the amendment to claim 1 has been revised above to clarify the remaining issues of indefiniteness. The amendment to claim 2 has overcome the indefiniteness issues, but created a new issue of new matter as recited in the new matter rejection above.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Fullerton US 2009/0252671 teaches a hydrogen generation composition including aluminum, sodium hydroxide, and water (Abstract). The material may further be turned into a reactant paste using a hydrocarbon binder (Paragraph [0035], Fig. 8).
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JAMES A FIORITO whose telephone number is (571)272-9921. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9AM-5PM.
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) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Amber Orlando can be reached at (571) 270-3149. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JAMES A FIORITO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1731
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