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 .
Claims 1-22 are presently pending in this application.
Claim Interpretation
In Applicants’ claims, the limitation “high specific surface area nanostructured forms” will be interpreted as defining nano-powders, nano-particles, nano-flakes, nano-rods, nano-tubes, nano-granules, mixtures or combinations thereof; see page 8, lines 15-17 of Applicants’ Specification.
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 12 and 21 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 12 is indefinite for lacking antecedent basis for the limitation “stainless-steel balls to powder”, as claims 10 and 11, from which claim 12 directly or indirectly depend, do not recite the word “powder”. However, because claims 10 and 11 recite the limitation “dry mixture”, it appears that claim 12 should be amended to recite “dry mixture” instead of “powder”.
Claim 21 is indefinite for lacking antecedent basis for the limitation “dry form”, as claim 14, from which this claim depends, does not recite this limitation. However, because claims 19 and 20 recite the limitation “dry form”, it appears that claim 21 should be amended to depend from either claim 19 or claim 20. Alternatively, since the recitations of (a) claims 7 and 8 and (b) claims 20 and 21 are the same, it appears that claim 21 should be amended to depend from claim 20.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-11, 13-20, and 22 are allowed.
Claims 12 and 21 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The prior art of record does not teach the claimed anode electrocatalyst composition comprising a metal silicide alloy solid solution having the general formula (A(n-x)Bx)Siy, where A is a transition metal element or mixture or alloy thereof, B is a noble metal element or mixture or alloy thereof, wherein each of n and x is a positive integer or a positive fractional number, and y is a positive integer, and wherein the anode electrocatalyst is used in an acid mediated proton exchange membrane hydrogen oxidation reaction.
The prior art of record also does not teach or suggest Applicants’ claimed (1) method of preparing the aforementioned claimed composition or (2) employment of the aforementioned claimed composition in a proton exchange membrane fuel cell.
Exemplary prior art includes Merzougui et al. (U. S. Patent No. 8,383,293, Applicants’ submitted art), which teaches an electrocatalyst comprising a noble metal or noble-metal based alloy catalyst supported on a catalyst support, wherein the catalyst support comprises a transition metal silicide (col. 3, lines 37-42). While this reference defines the electrocatalyst as a “combination of a catalyst and a support” (col. 3, lines 35 and 36), this reference does not teach or suggest that the electrocatalyst is in the form of a solid solution, nor does this reference teach or suggest the general formula (A(n-x)Bx)Siy, as recited in Applicants’ claims.
Additional prior art includes:
Hoekje (U. S. Patent No. 3,852,175), which teaches an anode comprising an electroconductive surface (e.g., metallic platinum or ruthenium oxide) on an electroconductive silicon substrate, wherein the electroconductive silicon substrate may comprise various metal silicides (col. 4, line 33 to col. 5, line 47), but is preferably a substrate containing from about 85 atomic percent to about 99.99 atomic percent elemental silicon (col. 3, lines 58-62).
“NbOsSi and TaOsSi—Two new superconducting ternary osmium silicides,” by Christopher Benndorf et al., which teaches equiatomic silicides represented by the formulae NbOsSi, TaOsSi, TIrSi (T being, inter alia, Nb or Ta), and TPtSi (T = Nb, Ta). See the Abstract and Table 1 of Benndorf et al. In these equiatomic silicides, Nb and Ta read on “A” in Applicants’ claims 1 and 2, and Os and Ir read on “B” in Applicants’ claims 1 and 3. However, the equiatomic silicides in Benndorf et al. do not read on the general formula recited in Applicants’ claim 1, (A(n-x)Bx)Siy. In order for the equiatomic silicides in Benndorf et al. to read on said claimed formula, the subscripts “(n-x)” and “x” would both have to be 1.
Zhang et al. (CN 104525218), which teaches a Pt-CoSi2/graphene nanocomposite electrocatalyst, wherein cobalt silicide (CoSi2) serves as a co-catalyst and Pt serves as the active ingredient (Abstract). The nanocomposite, which can be used as an electrocatalyst for the anode and cathode of a fuel cell, is formed by supporting platinum nanoparticles with CoSi2-supported graphene; see paragraphs [0002] and [0006]-[0017] of Zhang et al.
Ugawa et al. (JP 2005 310418), which teaches transition metal silicides as catalysts for fuel cells. Examples of the transition metal silicides include silicides of transition metals corresponding to the transition metals recited in, for example, Applicants’ claims 1 and 3; however, the catalysts disclosed in Ugawa et al. do not contain noble metals. See paragraph [0015] of Ugawa et al.
Demuth et al. (U. S. Patent Publication No. 2011/0303548), which teaches the employment of silicides in the photoelectrochemical production of hydrogen and oxygen and for the simultaneously or separately conducted photoelectrical/photovoltaic production of electricity (Abstract), wherein exemplary silicides include those of noble metals (e.g., platinum, ruthenium, osmium, rhodium, palladium) and of transition metals (e.g., iron, nickel, manganese, titanium, etc.). While this reference additionally teaches silicides of transition metals and phosphorus, e.g., copper-phosphorus silicide, cobalt-phosphorus silicide, or of transition metals and boron, e.g., cobalt-boron silicide, iron-boron silicide, Demuth et al. do not teach or suggest silicides containing both a transition metal and a noble metal, as recited in Applicants’ claims. See paragraph [0011] of Demuth et al.
As a courtesy, English translations of CN 1632979 and DE 19643157, cited by Applicants, have been provided.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
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/Patricia L. Hailey/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1732 February 20, 2026
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