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
Claims 18-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected group, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 5-8-2026.
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.
Claim 7 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 7 recites “the specific surface area”. There is a lack of antecedent basis for “the specific surface area” in previous claim limitations.
Claim 8 recites “the carbon dioxide (CO2) adsorption amount”. There is a lack of antecedent basis for “the carbon dioxide (CO2) adsorption amount” in previous claim limitations.
Claim 9 recites “the total pore volume”. There is a lack of antecedent basis for “the total pore volume” in previous claim limitations.
Claim 10 recites “the micropore volume”. There is a lack of antecedent basis for “the micropore volume” in previous claim limitations.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1-17, 21,22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chinese reference(CN114950159A) taken together with Xiao et al(2015/0375177).
Chinese reference teaches a microporous polymer membrane(para 0014 stating “in the separation membrane and its preparation method”) comprising a product of halogenated aromatic polymers, comprising a repeating unit having: (a) a residue of an aldehyde or ketone having a halogenated aromatic ring(noting para 0014 stating “a carbonyl compound is used as the first monomer”; para 0015 stating “the carbonyl compound mentioned in step (1) is selected from any one of ketone compounds or their derivatives, aldehyde compounds or their derivatives”; para 0016 stating the carbonyl compound is selected from … octafluoroacetophenone”) ; and (b) a residue of a deactivated aromatic hydrocarbon having multiple aromatic rings(noting para 0014 stating “an aromatic compound as the second monomer” ; para 0018 stating “the aromatic hydrocarbon in step (1) is selected from … p-terphenyl ; also noting para 0009 stating using carbonyl compounds, aromatic hydrocarbons and compounds with rigid twisted structures as monomers, and superacid as catalyst, a polymerization reaction was carried out”; para 0034 stating “ the casting liquid is coated on the support and then placed in an oven to dry, thereby obtaining an aromatic polymer separation membrane prepared based on superacid catalysis”). Chinese reference is silent as to a microporous crosslinked polymer membrane comprising a thermally crosslinked product.
Xiao et al teaches a microporous crosslinked polymer membrane(para 0003 stating “the invention provided crosslinked porous membranes, particularly crosslinked hydrophilic cellulosic porous membranes”, also noting para 0024 stating “in accordance with an embodiment, the crosslinked porous membrane comprises a cellulosic material and a block copolymer” , also noting para 0059 stating “the ring opening polymerization can be carried out in a suitable solvent”, wherein para 0073 -para 0077 provides for a method of preparing crosslinked porous membranes including providing a casting solution, casting the casting solution as a thin film, and crosslinking the uncrosslinked porous membrane. It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the microporous polymer membrane including halogenated aromatic polymers of Chinese reference as a microporous crosslinked polymer membrane in order to provide a membrane that provides increased chemical resistance and increased strength due to thermal crosslinking (noting para 0002 of Xiao et al stating “there exists an unmet need to modify or improve one or more properties of such membranes , for example … , to increase chemical resistance, to increase mechanical strength” ; noting para 0095 stating crosslinked porous membranes find use in gas separation membranes).
With regards to claim 2, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein the residue of an aldehyde or ketone having a halogenated aromatic ring is derived from at least one compound shown in Formula 1 stated in claim 2 (noting para 0017, specifically noting the ketone or aldehyde compounds such as 2’,3’,4’,5’,6’ – pentafluoroacetophenone , equivalent to embodiment “af” in claim 2).
With regards to claim 3, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein the residue of an aldehyde or ketone having a halogenated aromatic ring is derived from octafluoroacetophenone.
With regards to claim 4, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein the residue of a deactivated aromatic hydrocarbon having multiple aromatic rings is derived from at least one compound shown in Formula 2 stated in claim 4(noting para 0018 stating “the aromatic hydrocarbon compound in step (1) is selected from biphenyl, diphenyl ether, p-terphenyl”).
With regards to claim 5, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein the residue of a deactivated aromatic hydrocarbon having multiple aromatic rings multiple aromatic rings is derived from para-terphenyl(noting para 0018 stating “p-terphenyl”).
With regards to claim 6, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches the halogenated aromatic polymer has the structure of formula 3(noting Chinese reference teaches an aromatic polymer separation membrane including a polymer produced from a polymerization reaction of a residue of an aldehyde or ketone having a halogenated aromatic ring and a residue of a deactivated aromatic hydrocarbon having multiple aromatic rings).
With regards to claim 7, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein the specific surface area calculated using the nitrogen (N₂) adsorption isotherm measured at -196°C and the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) equation is 520 m²/g to 1,000 m²/g (Examiner noting that Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al teaches a microporous crosslinked polymer membrane produced from a polymerization reaction of a residue of an aldehyde or ketone having a halogenated aromatic ring and a residue of a deactivated aromatic hydrocarbon having multiple aromatic rings, therefore examiner respectfully submits that the specific surface area of the product membrane is expected to fall within the claimed range of 520 m²/g to 1,000 m²/g).
With regards to claim 8, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein the carbon dioxide (CO₂) adsorption amount calculated from the carbon dioxide (CO₂) adsorption isotherm measured at 0°C is 35 cm³/g to 80 cm³/g (Examiner noting that a carbon dioxide adsorption amount is not given patentable weight for prior art analysis, wherein claim 1 is only directed to a microporous crosslinked polymer membrane, and the claims are not directed to a process of adsorption of a specific component, such as carbon dioxide).
With regards to claim 9, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein the total pore volume calculated using the nitrogen (N₂) adsorption isotherm measured at -196°C and the non-local density functional theory (NLDFT) model is 0.20 cm³/g to 0.40 cm³/g (Examiner noting that Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al teaches a microporous crosslinked polymer membrane produced from a polymerization reaction of a residue of an aldehyde or ketone having a halogenated aromatic ring and a residue of a deactivated aromatic hydrocarbon having multiple aromatic rings, therefore examiner respectfully submits that the specific total pore volume is expected to fall within the claimed range of 0.20 cm³/g to 0.40 cm³/g).
With regards to claim 10, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein the micropore volume with an average diameter of 2 nm or less calculated using the nitrogen (N₂) adsorption isotherm measured at -196°C and the non-local density functional theory (NLDFT) model is 0.10 cm³/g to 0.30 cm³/g (Examiner noting that Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al teaches a microporous crosslinked polymer membrane produced from a polymerization reaction of a residue of an aldehyde or ketone having a halogenated aromatic ring and a residue of a deactivated aromatic hydrocarbon having multiple aromatic rings, therefore examiner respectfully submits that the specific micropore volume is expected to fall within the claimed range of 0.10 cm³/g to 0.30 cm³/g).
With regards to claim 11, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein the microporous crosslinked polymer membrane has an average thickness of 60 µm to 100 µm (Examiner noting Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al teaches a membrane produced from a polymerization reaction of a residue of an aldehyde or ketone having a halogenated aromatic ring and a residue of a deactivated aromatic hydrocarbon having multiple aromatic rings, and produced by coating a casting liquid onto a support and drying in an oven and subsequently crosslinked, wherein the microporous crosslinked polymer membrane is expected to fall within an average thickness of 60 µm to 100 µm).
With regards to claim 12, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein under the conditions of 1 atm and 35°C, the hydrogen permeability is 4,000 Barrer to 16,000 Barrer, the carbon dioxide permeability is 10,000 Barrer to 31,000 Barrer, the nitrogen permeability is 800 Barrer to 21,000 Barrer, and the methane permeability is 500 Barrer to 2,000 Barrer (Examiner noting that a hydrogen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and methane permeability is not given patentable weight for prior art analysis, wherein claim 1 is only directed to a microporous crosslinked polymer membrane, and the claims are not directed to a process of permeability of a specific component).
With regards to claim 13, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein under the conditions of 1 atm and -20°C, the carbon dioxide permeability is 7,000 Barrer to 9,000 Barrer, the nitrogen permeability is 100 Barrer to 150 Barrer, and the methane permeability is 50 Barrer to 75 Barrer (Examiner noting that a carbon dioxide and methane permeability is not given patentable weight for prior art analysis, wherein claim 1 is only directed to a microporous crosslinked polymer membrane, and the claims are not directed to a process of permeability of a specific component).
With regards to claim 14, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein under the conditions of 2 atm and 35°C, the ethylene permeability is 1,200 Barrer to 4,000 Barrer, the ethane permeability is 400 Barrer to 1,500 Barrer, the propylene permeability is 2,000 Barrer to 3,000 Barrer, and the propane permeability is 250 Barrer to 400 Barrer( (Examiner noting that an ethylene, propylene, and propane permeability is not given patentable weight for prior art analysis, wherein claim 1 is only directed to a microporous crosslinked polymer membrane, and the claims are not directed to a process of permeability of a specific component).
With regards to claim 15, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein under the conditions of 1 atm and 35°C, the carbon dioxide/hydrogen selectivity is 1.0 to 3.0, the carbon dioxide/nitrogen selectivity is 12.0 to 18.0, and the carbon dioxide/methane selectivity is 12.0 to 20.0( Examiner noting that a carbon dioxide/hydrogen, carbon dioxide/nitrogen, and carbon dioxide/methane selectivity is not given patentable weight for prior art analysis, wherein claim 1 is only directed to a microporous crosslinked polymer membrane, and the claims are not directed to a process of selectivity of a specific component).
With regards to claim 16, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein under the conditions of 1 atm and -20°C, the carbon dioxide/nitrogen selectivity is 45 to 90 and the carbon dioxide/methane selectivity is 93 to 200 ( Examiner noting that a carbon dioxide/nitrogen and carbon dioxide/methane selectivity is not given patentable weight for prior art analysis, wherein claim 1 is only directed to a microporous crosslinked polymer membrane, and the claims are not directed to a process of selectivity of a specific component).
With regards to claim 17, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein under the conditions of 2 atm and 35°C, the ethylene/ethane selectivity is 2.0 to 5.0 and the propylene/propane selectivity is 6.0 to 10.0 (( Examiner noting that an ethylene/ethane and propylene/propane selectivity is not given patentable weight for prior art analysis, wherein claim 1 is only directed to a microporous crosslinked polymer membrane, and the claims are not directed to a process of selectivity of a specific component).
With regards to claim 21, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches a method for separating gas, which comprises allowing a mixed gas comprising at least one gas selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, methane, ethane, ethylene, propane, and propylene to pass through the microporous crosslinked 15 polymer membrane of claim 1 to thereby partially separate this at least one gas selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, methane, ethane, ethylene, propane, and propylene (noting para 0037 stating “the aromatic polymer separation membrane prepared based on superacid catalysis is used for the separation of N2/VOC’s mixtures, with nitrogen gas passing through preferentially”).
With regards to claim 22, Chinese reference taken together with Xiao et al further teaches wherein from a mixed gas selected from the group consisting of combinations of hydrogen/carbon dioxide, carbon dioxide/nitrogen, carbon dioxide/methane, ethylene/ethane, and propylene/propane, at least one gas among them is partially separated.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ROBERT A HOPKINS whose telephone number is (571)272-1159. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Thurs 6am-4pm.
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/ROBERT A HOPKINS/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1776
June 15, 2026
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