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 .
Claim Objections
Claim 17 is objected to because of the following informalities:
for the purpose of providing proper antecedent basis, the entire claim should be amended to:
17. (currently amended) The method of claim 14, further comprising:
exposing the precursor scavenger material to carbonic acid a scavenger material in the wellbore, wherein the formed scavenger material comprises propenal.
Appropriate correction is required.
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 1-7, 11-13 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cassidy et al (U.S Pub 2012/0142563) (“Cassidy”).
Regarding Claim 1, Cassidy discloses a method for applying a scavenger material to a wellbore (Abstract; paragraphs [0007] and [0008] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses corrosion inhibition components), the method comprising:
providing a precursor scavenger material to a location within a wellbore extending through an earth formation (Abstract; Page 1, paragraphs [0009] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses reaction products such as aldehydes and amides for use in subterranean formations), the precursor scavenger material comprising an acetal or a hydroxyaldehyde (paragraphs [0036], [0037] and [0041] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses acetals); and
reacting the precursor scavenger material in the wellbore or the earth formation in-situ to form a scavenger material comprising propenal (Abstract; paragraphs [0009] and [0036] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses reacting at least one amide and one aldehyde to form a product such as propenal in the form of an aldehyde).
Reference Cassidy further discloses wherein “the corrosion of metal surfaces occurs when the metal surfaces are contacted by corrosive environments that are commonly encountered downhole including hydrogen sulfide; the term “corrosion” refers to any reaction between a material and its environment that causes some deterioration of the material or its properties (paragraph [0002]).” Since Cassidy discloses reacting the precursor scavenger material in the wellbore or the earth formation in-situ to form a scavenger material comprising propenal (paragraphs [0009] and [0036] [Wingdings font/0xE0] see rejection above) and further mentions hydrogen sulfide is a corrosive component that is commonly encountered downhole, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application to react the scavenger material comprising propenal with the hydrogen sulfide that is encountered downhole in order to inhibit corrosion (i.e., which in this case includes reducing a concentration of the hydrogen sulfide downhole (paragraphs [0002]-[0007])).
Regarding Claim 2, Cassidy discloses the method of claim 1, wherein reacting the precursor scavenger material comprises contacting the precursor scavenger material with an acid to react the precursor scavenger material in the wellbore or the earth formation to form the scavenger material (Page 6, paragraphs [0044] and [0046] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses a variety of acids used in the reactions).
Regarding Claim 3, Cassidy discloses the method of claim 2, wherein contacting the precursor scavenger material with an acid comprises contacting the precursor scavenger material with carbonic acid (Page 6, paragraphs [0044] and [0046] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses a variety of acids used in the reactions such as carbonic acid).
Regarding Claim 4, Cassidy discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the precursor scavenger material comprises a reaction product of formaldehyde and another aldehyde (paragraphs [0030] and [0036] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses a reaction product of formaldehyde).
Regarding Claim 5, Cassidy discloses the method of claim 4, wherein another aldehyde comprises acetaldehyde (paragraphs [0030] and [0036] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses acetaldehyde).
Regarding Claim 6, Cassidy discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the precursor scavenger material comprises a reaction product of propenal and an alcohol (paragraphs [0041] and [0042] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses a reaction product of an alcohol).
Regarding Claim 7, Cassidy discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the precursor scavenger material comprises a reaction product of propenal and a diol and comprises a cyclic ring (paragraph [0042]).
Regarding Claim 11, Cassidy discloses the method of claim 1, further comprising:
measuring a concentration of the at least one of hydrogen sulfide or the mercaptan in the wellbore (Abstract; paragraphs [0002] and [0003]; paragraphs [0043] and [0047] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses specific concentration ranges of the reaction products of at least one aldehyde and at least one amide downhole); and
providing a concentration of the precursor scavenger material to the wellbore based on the measured concentration (Abstract; paragraphs [0043] and [0047] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses cocnentrations of the precursor scavenger material comprising acetals).
Regarding Claim 12, Cassidy discloses the method of claim 1, wherein forming a scavenger material comprises forming the scavenger without exposing personnel to the scavenger material (Abstract; paragraphs [0009] and [0036] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses reacting at least one amide and one aldehyde to form a product such as propenal in the form of an aldehyde).
Regarding Claim 13, Cassidy discloses the method of claim 12, wherein a carrier fluid for the precursor scavenger material comprises an alcohol (paragraphs [0041] and [0042] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses a reaction product of an alcohol).
Regarding Claim 18, Cassidy discloses a system for providing a scavenger material to a wellbore (Abstract; paragraphs [0007] and [0008] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses corrosion inhibition components), the system comprising:
an injection pump (paragraph [0040] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses wherein a treatment fluid is pumped downhole) in fluid communication with a precursor scavenger material (Abstract; Page 1, paragraphs [0009] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses reaction products such as aldehydes and amides for use in subterranean formations), the precursor scavenger material comprising an acetal or a hydroxyaldehyde (paragraphs [0036], [0037] and [0041] [Wingdings font/0xE0] Cassidy discloses acetals).
Reference Cassidy discloses wherein a treatment fluid is pumped downhole (paragraph [0040]). Although silent to expressly disclosing “an injection pump that is in fluid communication” as instantly claimed, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have included “an injection pump that is in fluid communication and wellbore piping in fluid communication with the injection pump that is configured to provide the precursor scavenger material to a downhole location (Abstract; paragraph [0040]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 14-17 are allowed.
Claims 8-10 and 19-20 are 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.
The following claims that are indicated as allowed and/or allowable above contain allowable subject matter wherein “the precursor scavenger material comprises a component such as acrolein ethylene glycol acetal or 3-hydroxypropanal or acrolein diethyl acetal.”
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Kabbani et al (U.S Pub 2015/0275067) – discloses methods of making carbon particles by mixing carbon with a dehydrating agent (i.e., sulfonic acid) (Abstract; Page 1, paragraphs [0004] and [0007]).
Ali et al (U.S Patent 7,902,124) – discloses methods of treating a subterranean formation by introducing a well treatment fluid comprising an aqueous solution, a mineral acid, a viscoelastic surfactant, a gelling agent and other aldehydes (Abstract; Col 3, lines 10-40).
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/ASHISH K VARMA/Examiner, Art Unit 3674
/WILLIAM D HUTTON JR/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3674