DETAILED ACTION
Status of Claims:
Claims 1, 2 and 4-13 are pending.
Claims 1, 4, 6, 9 and 10 are amended.
Claim 3 is Canceled.
Claims 6-13 are withdrawn from consideration.
This Action is Made Final.
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 Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1, 2, 4, and 5 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. The prior art rejection is withdrawn in view of the amendments.
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.
Claims 1, 2, 4, and 5 are 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. Claim 1 has been amended to require “an iron-modified liquid activated carbon…and an aqueous fluid, comprising water; and alcohol; and organic solvent…30 g/L to 40 g/L of a ferrous sulphate solution; 90 g/L to 100 g/L of a ferric chloride solution; and abas…”. There is no support in the original disclosure for the claimed combination of the iron-modified liquid activated carbon and aqueous fluid. The ferrous sulphate solution, ferric chloride solution and base are used to modify the liquid activated carbon in the aqueous fluid (see for example paragraphs 29-32 of the published specification). The specification discloses reactions occurring (“the activated carbon solution is then stirred for about 6 hours to 8 hours to produce the iron-modified activated carbon solution”) (see para. 0030, 0040). The specification further states that the “iron-modified liquid activated carbon was collected from the beaker through a valve into a container”. As at least the ferrous sulphate, ferric chloride, and base are reactants in the formation of the iron-modified activated carbon they would not be present in the aqueous solution in the same concentrations added and only any excess, if any, that is not reacted would remain in solution (as show in figure 4 the iron from the ferrous sulphate and ferric chloride attach to the surface of the activated carbon). Therefore there is not support in the original disclosure for the aqueous fluid containing the components currently claimed. Claims 2, 4, and 5 contain new matter because they depend from claim 1.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Awadh (US 2021/0139348) teaches a suspension of activated carbon comprising water, an alcohol (ethanol) and an organic solvent (ethylene glycol) (see Claim 7). Min et al (KR 20220003264, English machine translation provided) which teaches forming iron oxide coated activated carbon with an iron chloride solution and a base (see pg. 5, 5th- 8th paragraphs).
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 CLAIRE A NORRIS whose telephone number is (571)272-5133. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th 7:30-5 F: 8-12.
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/CLAIRE A NORRIS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1779 4/27/2026
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