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 Species 2 (Claim 4) in the reply filed on 04/22/2026 is acknowledged. Claims 3 and 6 are withdrawn. Claims 1-2, 4-5 and 7-20 are examined herein.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 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 1-2, 4-5, 7-14, 16-18 and 20 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.
Claim 1 recites the limitation "the reducing gas" in line 7. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Appropriate correction is required.
Claims 7, 8, 10-12, 16-18 and 20 recites an informal Markush Group. Please use “at least one selected from the group consisting of A, B, and C”. Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claims 1-2, 5 and 7-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by JP’816 (JPH11-80816).
Regarding claims 1-2 and 7, JP’816 teaches a method for producing spherical Ni powder, comprising: providing a mixture of NiCl2 and a sulfur-containing compound; introducing the mixture of the NiCl2 and the sulfur-containing compound into a reactor; vaporizing the NiCl2 and the sulfur-containing compound within the reactor; and producing Ni powder containing sulfur through a reaction of the NiCl2 and the sulfur-containing compound with the reducing gas H2 introduced into the reactor (Page 4-6), which meets the limitation recited in claims 1-2 and 7.
Regarding claim 5, JP’816 discloses that the amount of SO42- in NiCl2.6H2O is 1000ppm (Examples 1 and 3-8), which converts to a molar ratio of 0.002472 and meets the limitation recited in claim 5.
Regarding claim 8, JP’816 discloses that the sulfur-containing compound can be Ni3S2 or NiSO4(Page 5), which meets the limitation recited in claim 8.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over JP’816 (JPH11-80816), and further in view of Yang (WO 2022/075576, US 2023/0415232 is used as translation).
Regarding claim 4, JP’816 discloses mixing NiCl2 with NiSO4 (Page 5). JP’816 does not explicitly disclose mixing NiCl2 with NiSO4 by spray-drying method. Yang teaches a method of making a Ni powder using chemical vapor deposition method that is analogous to the method of JP’816 (Abstract). Yang discloses that a solid mixture powder of a nickel salt such as NiCl2 and a metal sulfate or metal sulfide was formed using spray drying a solution containing nickel salt and a metal sulfate ([0066] to [0071]; [0109]). Yang discloses feeding the mixture into the reactor and the Ni powder produced have a uniform particle size ([0002]). It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to form solid mixture of NiCl2 with NiSO4 by spray-drying a solution containing NiCl2 and NiSO4 as taught by Yang in the process of JP’816 in order to make Ni powder with unform particle size as disclosed by Yang.
Claims 9-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over JP’816 (JPH11-80816), as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of JP’465 (JP2008-208465).
Regarding claims 9-12, JP’816 does not teach that the Ni powder is a Ni alloy powder. JP’465 teaches a method of making a Ni alloy powder by chemical vapor deposition (Page 2-4), which is analogous to the method of JP’816. JP’465 discloses that using a mixture of AgCl2 and NiCl2 as Ni alloy precursor in a chemical vapor deposition process would be able to make a nickel alloy powder with improved oxidation resistance (Page 2-4). Thus, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to make a Ni alloy powder using a mixture of AgCl2 and NiCl2 as Ni alloy precursor as taught by JP’465 in the process of JP’816 in order to make a Ni alloy powder having improved oxidation resistance as disclosed by JP’465.
Claims 13-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over JP’816 (JPH11-80816), as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of JP’601 (JP2004-339601).
Regarding claims 13 and 14, JP’816 does not teach the limitation recited in claims 13 and 14. JP’601 teaches a method of making Ni powder comprising: mixing nickel powder with a sintering inhibitor such as NaCl or KCl to form a mixed slurry, spray-drying the mixed slurry to coat the Ni powder with NaCl or KCl, heat treating the coated Ni powder in a reducing atmosphere such as H2 at a temperature of 600 to 700 °C to make a crystal-grown Ni powder ([0013] to [0018]). JP’601 discloses that the sintering inhibitor surrounds the periphery of the Ni powder, preventing fusion of the fine powders due to heat treatment ([0019]; [0020]). Thus, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to coat the Ni powder with NaCl or KCl and perform heat treatment at 600 to 700 °C in H2 as taught by JP’601 in the process of JP’816 in order to make a crystal-grown Ni powder without causing the fusion of fine powder as disclosed by JP’601. Since JP’601 discloses that the heat treatment is conducted in H2 ([0023]), one of ordinary skill in the art would expect that the process of JP’601 has a desulfurization effect as a result of a reaction of H2 with sulfur present in the Ni powder of JP’816. JP’601 further discloses that the heat-treated Ni powder is washed with pure water to dissolve and remove the sintering inhibitor and dried to obtain a crystal-grown Ni powder ([0019]; [0020]), which meets removing the shell layer limitation as recited in claim 13.
Claims 15-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over JP’816 (JPH11-80816) in view of JP’601 (JP2004-339601), and further in view of Yang (WO 2022/075576, US 2023/0415232 is used as translation).
Regarding claims 15-18, JP’816 teaches a method for producing spherical Ni powder, comprising: providing a mixture of NiCl2 and a sulfur-containing compound; introducing the mixture of the NiCl2 and the sulfur-containing compound into a reactor; vaporizing the NiCl2 and the sulfur-containing compound within the reactor; and producing Ni powder containing sulfur through a reaction of the NiCl2 and the sulfur-containing compound with the reducing gas H2 introduced into the reactor (Page 4-6).
JP’816 does not teach introducing a metal compound for shell formation, conducting desulfurization heat treatment and removing the shell layer as recited in claim 15. JP’601 teaches a method of making Ni powder comprising: mixing nickel powder with a sintering inhibitor such as NaCl or KCl to form a mixed slurry, spray-drying the mixed slurry to coat the Ni powder with NaCl or KCl, heat treating the coated Ni powder in a reducing atmosphere such as H2 at a temperature of 600 to 700 °C to make a crystal-grown Ni powder ([0013] to [0018]). JP’601 discloses that the sintering inhibitor surrounds the periphery of the Ni powder, preventing fusion of the fine powders due to heat treatment ([0019]; [0020]). Thus, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to coat the Ni powder with NaCl or KCl and perform heat treatment at 600 to 700 °C in H2 as taught by JP’601 in the process of JP’816 in order to make a crystal-grown Ni powder without causing the fusion of fine powder as disclosed by JP’601. Since JP’601 discloses that the heat treatment is conducted in H2 ([0023]), one of ordinary skill in the art would expect that the process of JP’601 has a desulfurization effect as a result of a reaction of H2 with sulfur present in the Ni powder of JP’816. JP’601 further discloses that the heat-treated Ni powder is washed with pure water to dissolve and remove the sintering inhibitor and dried to obtain a crystal-grown Ni powder ([0019]; [0020]), which meets removing the shell layer limitation as recited in claim 15.
JP’816 in view of JP’601 does not teach NaCl or KCl is provided together with the Ni precursor and the sulfur compound as recited in claim 15. Yang teaches a method of making a Ni powder that is analogous to the method of JP’816 (Abstract). Yang discloses that shell forming material NaCl or KCl may be provided together with a nickel salt to prevent coagulation of nickel particles ([0050] to [0070]). Thus, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide NaCl or KCl and the Ni salt together as taught by Yang in the process of JP’816 in view of JP’601 in order to prevent coagulation of nickel particles as disclosed by Yang.
Claims 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over JP’816 (JPH11-80816), and further in view of JP’601 (JP2004-339601).
Regarding claims 19-20, JP’816 teaches a method for producing spherical Ni powder, comprising: providing a mixture of NiCl2 and a sulfur-containing compound; introducing the mixture of the NiCl2 and the sulfur-containing compound into a reactor; vaporizing the NiCl2 and the sulfur-containing compound within the reactor; and producing Ni powder containing sulfur through a reaction of the NiCl2 and the sulfur-containing compound with the reducing gas H2 introduced into the reactor (Page 4-6).
JP’816 does not teach preparing a slurry by dispersing the nickel-based metal powder in a solution containing a sintering inhibitor followed by forming a powder-anti-sintering layer composite, conducting desulfurization heat treatment and removing the shell layer as recited in claim 19. JP’601 teaches a method of making Ni powder comprising: mixing nickel powder with a sintering inhibitor such as NaCl or KCl to form a mixed slurry, spray-drying the mixed slurry to coat the Ni powder with NaCl or KCl, heat treating the coated Ni powder in a reducing atmosphere such as H2 at a temperature of 600 to 700 °C to make a crystal-grown Ni powder ([0013] to [0018]). JP’601 discloses that the sintering inhibitor surrounds the periphery of the Ni powder, preventing fusion of the fine powders due to heat treatment ([0019]; [0020]). Thus, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to coat the Ni powder with NaCl or KCl and perform heat treatment at 600 to 700 °C in H2 as taught by JP’601 in the process of JP’816 in order to make a crystal-grown Ni powder without causing the fusion of fine powder as disclosed by JP’601. Since JP’601 discloses that the heat treatment is conducted in H2 ([0023]), one of ordinary skill in the art would expect that the process of JP’601 has a desulfurization effect as a result of a reaction of H2 with sulfur present in the Ni powder of JP’816. JP’601 further discloses that the heat-treated Ni powder is washed with pure water to dissolve and remove the sintering inhibitor and dried to obtain a crystal-grown Ni powder ([0019]; [0020]), which meets removing the anti-sintering layer limitation as recited in claim 19.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Xiaowei Su whose telephone number is (571)272-3239. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00-5:00.
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, Keith Hendricks can be reached at 5712721401. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/XIAOWEI SU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1733
Prosecution Insights