CTNF 18/517,427 CTNF 85942 DETAILED ACTION Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 07-07-aia AIA 07-07 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 – 07-08-aia AIA (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. 07-15 AIA Claim s 1-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102( a)(1 ) as being anticipated by Xiao et al. (US 2012/0004098) . Regarding claims 1-4 , Xiao discloses a highly dispersed metal catalyst comprising: a PtSn/C catalyst with various activated carbons (Table 2). In Table 2, the platinum concentration is 3.8 wt.% or less and the surface area of the activated carbon support is, for example, 1400 m 2 /g and 1475 m 2 /g, respectively, for Cabot Black Pearls 2000 and Akzo Nobel Ketjen Black EC-600 JD. Xiao further discloses the above electro-catalysts in the field of fuel cells (para 0040). Fuel cell commonly include a cathode, anode, and membrane. Xiao does not expressly teach the anode catalyst layer has a capacitance of greater than 0.1 F/cm 2 in a potential window of -0.1 to 1.2 V vs a reversible hydrogen potential. However, according to Applicant’s specification, a high capacitance in the anode electrode may be achieved by using a Pt/C or Pt-alloy/C catalyst at relatively low Pt weight percentage ( e.g. , 1-10 wt%). Moreover, a high capacitance in the anode electrode may also be achieved using a high surface area carbon support ( e.g. , 500-5000 m 2 /g). Therefore, a fuel cell including the above catalyst of Xiao should also have the recited anode catalyst layer capacitance. Regarding claims 5 and 6 , Xiao discloses an aluminum oxide support ( i.e. , metal oxide) (para 0034: Example 2). Regarding claim 7 , Xiao discloses PtSn (Table 2), wherein the tin may be viewed as the co-catalyst . Allowable Subject Matter 12-151-07 AIA 07-97 12-51-07 Claim s 10-20 are allowed. 12-151-08 AIA 07-43 12-51-08 Claim s 8 and 9 objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Conclusion 07-96 AIA The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure : Hampden-Smith et al. (US 2002/0107140) teaches electrochemical powders with high surface area carbons; and Whitacre (US 2013/0020999) teaches specific capacitance (F/g) vs electric potential (V vs SME) (Fig. 7A) . Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CARLOS BARCENA whose telephone number is (571)270-5780. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 8-5 pm. 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, Tong Guo can be reached at (571)272-3066. 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. /CARLOS BARCENA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1723 Application/Control Number: 18/517,427 Page 2 Art Unit: 1723 Application/Control Number: 18/517,427 Page 3 Art Unit: 1723 Application/Control Number: 18/517,427 Page 4 Art Unit: 1723
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