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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on May 29, 2026 has been entered.
This Office action is in response to the amendment filed May 29, 2026 in which claims 1, 12-13, 18, 20 and 22 were amended.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
Claims 1-3, 6-10, and 12-23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Vyakaranam (US 20230120367-appears on a previous PTO-892) in view KR 100311928 as an evidentiary reference (appears on the current PTO-892).
Vyakaranam teaches a method of reducing or preventing fouling in a plastic-derived synthetic feedstock derived from plastic pyrolysis. An antifouling agent includes a carboxylic acid/anhydride or a copolymer of a dicarboxylic acid/anhydride and alpha olefin (see abstract). The alpha-olefin may have 10-36 carbon atoms (see para 0057). The method of obtaining the synthetic feedstock comprises: (a) heating plastic ( under substantially oxygen free conditions at a temperature from about 400° C. to about 850° C. to produce a pyrolysis effluent; (b) condensing the pyrolysis effluent to obtain a synthetic feedstock; and (c) recovering the synthetic feedstock (see para 0040-0044). Various plastic types such a thermoplastic waste or recycled plastics may be used. The types of plastics commonly encountered in waste-plastic feedstock include, without limitation, low-density polyethylene, high-density polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene and the like, and combinations thereof (see para 0037).
The hydrocarbons from the pyrolysis oil may be diesel fuel (see para 0045). Depending on the processing conditions synthetic feedstock can have characteristics similar to crude oil from petroleum sources (see para 0048).
To the pyrolysate process stream or pyrolysate product is added the antifouling agent, which reduces or prevents foulant formation or deposition in the pyrolysate or process equipment. The antifouling agent is an anhydride of carboxylic acids or their derivatives or maleic anhydride and alpha olefin copolymers . The carboxylic acid anhydrides include succinic anhydride, and derivatives thereof (see para 0053; 0055). The succinic anhydride compounds include succinamides (carboxylic acid and an amine), succinimides, and N-alkyl, N-alkenyl, N-aryl, and N-alkaryl succinimides (acylated nitrogen compounds) (see para 0055).
The antifouling agent is effective to reduce or prevent fouling when the antifouling agent composition is added to a synthetic pyrolysis stream or synthetic pyrolysis product in an amount corresponding to about 10 ppm to 5000 ppm by weight of the antifouling agent (see para 0059). Other additives can be added to the pyrolysis oil during processing and storage. In some embodiments, the other additives are antioxidants and neutralizers (see para 0069). The antioxidants are set forth in U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/159,266 which is now (US Patent 12,304,888) which teaches that the antioxidants are phenolic, an aromatic amine or mixtures and combinations thereof. Examples of antioxidants include phenolic antioxidants, such as hindered phenols and phenylenediamines and hydroxydiphenylamine (see patent at col. 6 and 7). Vyakaranam meets the limitations of the claims other than the differences that are set forth below.
Vyakaranam does not teach compositions wherein he states that nitrogen containing compounds are antioxidants. However, no unobviousness is seen in this difference because Vyakaranam teaches that succinamides and succinimides (acylated nitrogen compounds) may be present in the oil and if these compounds function as antioxidants in the present application one would expect that they would also perform as antioxidants in Vyakaranam. It has long been settled that a compound and it’s properties are inseparable.
Vyakaranam does not specifically teach that the pyrolysis oil may be blended with a middle distillate fuel oil. However, no unobviousness is seen in this difference because Vyakaranam teaches that the pyrolysis oil may boil in the diesel fuel range and it is well settled that it is prima facie obvious to combine two compositions each of which is taught by the prior art to be useful for the same purpose, in order to form a third composition to be used for the very same purpose.... [T]he idea of combining them flows logically from their having been individually taught in the prior art.” In re Kerkhoven, 626 F.2d 846, 850, 205 USPQ 1069, 1072 (CCPA 1980).
With respect to the storage stability of the composition, it would be reasonable to expect that Vyakaranam would meet this limitation because he uses the same components as those set forth in the present claims.
Vyakaranam does not specifically teach that the acylated nitrogen compound is the reaction product of a polyisobutene-substituted succinic acid or succinic anhydride and a polyethylene polyamine. However, KR meets this limitation.
KR teaches additives for hydrocarbon oils (see abstract). KR teaches that the hydrocarbon oil may be a fuel oil such as petroleum fuel oil (middle distillate) or pyrolysis gas oil (see page 9, [Hydrocarbon oil] section). KR teaches acylated nitrogen compounds that may be used in the hydrocarbon oil composition include a preferred class of acylated amino compounds prepared by reacting a hydrocarbyl substituent having at least 10 carbon atoms with a nitrogen compound characterized by having at least one -NH- group. Typically, the acylating agent is a mono- or polycarboxylic acid (or a reactive equivalent thereof), such as substituted succinic acid, and the amino compound will be a polyamine or a mixture of polyamines, most typically a mixture of ethylene polyamines (see page 7, second full paragraph). Other types of useful acylated nitrogen compounds include the reaction of fatty monocarboxylic acids having about 12 to 30 carbon atoms with the above alkylene amines, typically ethylene, propylene or trimethylene polyamines and mixtures thereof, having from 2 to 8 amino groups. Fatty monocarboxylic acids are generally mixtures of straight and branched chain fatty carboxylic acids having 12 to 30 carbon atoms (see page 8, last paragraph).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to prepare the acylated nitrogen compound such that the product is the reaction of a polyisobutene-substituted succinic acid or succinic anhydride and a polyethylene polyamine because KR teaches that pyrolysis oils, such as that taught by Vyakaranam, may be combined with such acylated nitrogen compounds. KR also teaches that pyrolysis oils may contain acylated nitrogen compounds that are reaction products of one or more fatty acids having up to 30 carbon atoms and a polyethylene polyamine with 2 to 8 amino groups (see page 8 last paragraph through page 9). Vyakaranam desires succinimides and teaches that these compounds reduce or prevent foulant formation or deposition in the pyrolysate or process equipment and KR teaches how these compounds are prepared.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that Vyakaranam does not disclose or suggest nitrogen-containing antioxidants which are the reaction product of a polyisobutene-substituted succinic acid or succinic anhydride and a polyethylene polyamine, or indeed their inclusion in pyrolysis oils.
Vyakaranam teaches that the oil composition may contain succinimides. KR teaches that these compounds are prepared by the reaction of a polyisobutene-substituted succinic acid or succinic anhydride and a polyethylene polyamine. This is a common reaction product used in fuels.
Applicant argues that Vyakaranam focuses on reducing fouling in plastic-derived feedstocks, not on improving oxidative or storage stability. Although Vyakaranam briefly mentions (in paragraph [0069]) optional additives which may include antioxidants, Vyakaranam does not provide any teaching of compounds that may provide such antioxidant effects, or provide any link between the compounds which are generally disclosed and their antioxidant activity. Therefore, Applicant’s opinion is that Vyakaranam's disclosures would not have made obvious to the skilled person that additives of type (a)(i) in the claims could improve oxidative or storage stability.
While Vyakaranam teaches using acylated nitrogen compounds as antifoulants for the pyrolysis oil, it is clear that the pyrolysis oil may contain what Applicant is calling a nitrogen containing antioxidant. It is well settled in the art that a compound and its properties are inseparable, and from the standpoint of patent law, a compound and all its properties are inseparable. See In re Papesch, 137 USPQ 43 (CCPA 1963). It is also known in the art that additives may have more than one property. Therefore, if the acylated nitrogen compounds have antioxidant properties in the present claims then they would also have antioxidant properties in Vyakaranam.
It should be noted that Applicant’s arguments directed to Blackborow are moot in view of the new rejection.
Applicant argues that Vyakaranam does not disclose nitrogen-containing antioxidants, let alone the use of nitrogen containing antioxidants comprising one or more acylated nitrogen compounds.
Vyakaranam teaches at paragraph [0069] that antioxidants can be added to the pyrolysis oil. Vyakaranam states that examples of the antioxidants are reported in U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/159,266. This provisional application states that aromatic diamine antioxidants may be used and that a preferred diamine antioxidant is a phenylenediamine. While Vyakaranam teaches using acylated nitrogen compounds as antifoulants for the pyrolysis oil, it is clear that the pyrolysis oil may contain what Applicant is calling a nitrogen containing antioxidant. Furthermore, it is noted that all of Applicant’s examples contain phenylenediamine antioxidants. The examples also contain additives that are not being claimed in claim 1.
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/CEPHIA D TOOMER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1771 18849862/20260627
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