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 Group I, Claims 1-3,10 and 11 in the reply filed on 7/31/2026 is acknowledged.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-3,10 and 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by 20210376315 (US ‘315).
As to Claim 1, US ‘315 discloses silicon particles which further contain 5 to 200 ppm or 0.02 wt % of chlorine (Abstract) wherein the electrode material further contains carbon (para. 0066). The Examiner notes the chlorine content is believed to be in anion form as diatomic chlorine would escape as a gas.
As to Claim 2, see discussion of Claim 1.
As to Claim 3, the carbon content of the anode material is up to 40 wt % (para. 0067).
As to Claim 10, a battery embodiment is disclosed (para. 0068).
As to Claim 11, see discussion of Claims 2 and 3.
Claim(s) 1-3,10 and 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102102(a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by EP 3407408 (EP ‘408).
As to Claims 1-3, EP ‘408 discloses a particle comprised of silicon coated with phosphate salt at 0.1 % mass (para. 0074) which the Examiner construes as being in an anion form due to a wet mixing process (para. 0083). The particle can also have a carbon coating present (para. 0080).
As to Claim 10, a battery embodiment is disclosed.
As to Claim 11, see discussion of Claims 1-3 above.
Claim(s) 1-3,10 and 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by CN 11216831 (CN ‘831).
As to Claim 1, CN ‘831 discloses a process whereby alkyl orthosilicate in ethanol is mixed with a with 50 % by weigh metal salt in the presence of ammonia and epoxy resin. The material is subjected to a pyrolysis step to create a carbon containing silicon composite (Example 1, pg. 3).
CN ‘831 is relied upon as discussed above, however, does not specifically disclose the presence of an anion at 0.001 to 0.5 wt % as required by the claim.
As to the difference, the Examiner respectfully submits the prior art would inherently disclose the anion presence and content due to the similarity of the starting materials and processes used to create the prior art composite.
As to Claim 2, the anion would be chloride as the salt contains chloride.
As to Claim 3, see discussion of Claim 1 in regard to production of the carbon.
As to Claim 10, CN ‘831 discloses the use of the material for use in batteries (pg. 2, lines 11).
As to Claim 11, see discussion of Claims 2 and 3 above.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JAISON P THOMAS whose telephone number is (571)272-8917. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday, 9:00 am-3:30 pm EST.
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, Robert Jones can be reached at (571) 270-7733. 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.
/J.P.T/Examiner, Art Unit 1762
/jt/ 9/1/2026
/MARK KOPEC/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1762
Prosecution Insights