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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of claims 1-4 and 9 in the reply filed on 16 JULY 2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 5-8 withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 16 JULY 2026.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
In Paragraph 011, “Inone” should read “In one”.
In Paragraph 015, “linkingagent” should read “linking agent”.
In Paragraph 0200, “Inthe” should read “In the”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Objections
Claim 4 is objected to because of the following informalities:
In Claim 4, “wherein alkyldiamine-based cross-linking agent” in line 1 of the claim should read “wherein the alkyldiamine-based cross-linking agent”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-4 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) & (a)(2) as being anticipated by Li et al, International Patent Application No. WO 2022173375 A1 (hereinafter Li) with support from Shengyang Zhou, Yali Zhao, Jifu Zheng, Suobo Zhang, High-performance functionalized polymer of intrinsic microporosity (PIM) composite membranes with thin and stable interconnected layer for organic solvent nanofiltration, Journal of Membrane Science, Volume 591, 2019, 117347, ISSN 0376-7388, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.memsci.2019.117347 (hereinafter Zhou).
Regarding Claim 1, Li discloses a membrane composite formed as a hollow fiber membrane (i.e., a hollow fiber membrane; Page 9, Line 4) is advantageously used for organic solvent filtration (i.e., for organic solvent nanofiltration; Page 6, Lines 29-30) that comprises a polymer (i.e., a polymer; Page 4, Lines 10-11), wherein the polymer is selected from a polymer with intrinsic microporosity-1 (PIM-1) and that the polymer layer is cross-linked (i.e., comprising an intermolecular cross-linked polymer),
wherein the polymer comprises monomer residues of the following formula:
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with the R1 and R2 groups being acyloxy, which results in a COOH group in each location, the repeat units of the monomer is m=40-450 (i.e., the n is an integer from 2 to 7000; Page 24, Lines 15-30) where the PIM-1-COOH specifically can be seen on Page 25, Lines 10-30, and wherein the polymer is crosslinked with 1,6-hexanediamine (i.e., where the x is an integer from 2-12, and the y is an integer from 2 to 7000; Page 9, Lines 18-20). Hexanediamine is a molecule with the structure of H2N-C-C-C-C-C-C-NH2, which will react with the PIM-1-COOH between adjacent COOH groups to form a [Polymer]-C(O)-N-C-C-C-C-C-C-N-C(O)-[Polymer] bond. In the crude mock up using Formula 1 of Li below, the cross-linking reaction between a PIM-1-COOH polymer and 1,6-hexanediamine is shown, which will arrive at the claimed x, y, and n values of instant claim 1.
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Zhou pertains to the design and preparation of high performance organic solvent nanofiltration membranes (Abstract). Zhou teaches that PIM-1-COCl is obtained by hydrolysis of PIM-1, which forms PIM-1-COOH, and subsequent acylation in thionyl chloride for the purpose of crosslinking with amine groups (Abstract; Page 2, Col. 1, Paragraph 3). Therefore, the method of cross-linking the PIM-1-COOH polymer with 1,6-hexanediamine to form the above polymer is known in the art.
Regarding Claim 2, Li further discloses that the polymer used may be PIM-1-COOH (Page 25, Lines 10-30) with the repeat units of the monomer being m=40-450 (Page 24, Lines 15-30) and that the polymer may be crosslinked (i.e., wherein the intermolecular cross-linked polymer is formed by cross-linking a cross-linking agent between polymers represented by Formula (2); Page 5, Line 30).
Zhou further teaches that PIM-1-COCl is obtained by hydrolysis of PIM-1, which forms PIM-1-COOH, and subsequent acylation in thionyl chloride for the purpose of crosslinking with amine groups (Abstract; Page 2, Col. 1, Paragraph 3).
Furthermore, the limitation “wherein the intermolecular cross-linked polymer is formed by cross-linking a cross-linking agent between polymers represented by Formula (2)” is directed toward a product-by-process claim and is therefore not subject to patentability because the patentability of the product does not depend on its method of production. If the product in the product-by-process claim is the same as or obvious from a product of the prior art, the claim is unpatentable even though the prior product was made by a different process (In re Thorpe, 777 F.2d 695, 698, 227 USPQ 964, 966 (Fed. Cir. 1985) (MPEP 2113(I)).
Regarding Claim 3, Li further discloses that step of the crosslinking the layer of polymer is done with 1,6-hexanediamine (i.e., wherein the cross-linking agent includes an alkyldiamine-based cross-linking agent; Page 9, Lines 18-20).
Furthermore, the limitation “wherein the cross-linking agent includes an alkyldiamine-based cross-linking agent” is directed toward a product-by-process claim and is therefore not subject to patentability because the patentability of the product does not depend on its method of production. If the product in the product-by-process claim is the same as or obvious from a product of the prior art, the claim is unpatentable even though the prior product was made by a different process (In re Thorpe, 777 F.2d 695, 698, 227 USPQ 964, 966 (Fed. Cir. 1985) (MPEP 2113(I)).
Regarding Claim 4, Li further discloses that step of the crosslinking the layer of polymer is done with 1,6-hexanediamine (i.e., wherein the alkyldiamine-based cross-linking agent includes hexadiamine; Page 9, Lines 18-20).
Furthermore, the limitation “wherein the alkyldiamine-based cross-linking agent includes hexadiamine” is directed toward a product-by-process claim and is therefore not subject to patentability because the patentability of the product does not depend on its method of production. If the product in the product-by-process claim is the same as or obvious from a product of the prior art, the claim is unpatentable even though the prior product was made by a different process (In re Thorpe, 777 F.2d 695, 698, 227 USPQ 964, 966 (Fed. Cir. 1985) (MPEP 2113(I)).
Regarding Claim 9, Li further discloses a membrane composite formed as a hollow fiber membrane (i.e., a hollow fiber membrane comprising; Page 9, Line 4) is advantageously used for organic solvent filtration (i.e., for organic solvent nanofiltration; Page 6, Lines 29-30) that comprises the polymer described in the rejection of instant claim 1 above (i.e., the polymer for the hollow fiber membrane for organic solvent nanofiltration of claim 1).
Conclusion
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/A.A.G./ Examiner, Art Unit 1772
/IN SUK C BULLOCK/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1772
