Appeal No. 94-2033
Application No. 07/982,141
Claims 1 and 8, which are illustrative of the subject matter
on appeal, read as follows:
1. A method of producing aromatic primary amines of the
formula R-Ar-NH which comprises catalytically hydrogenating an
2
aromatic nitro compound of the formula R-Ar-NO which is derived
2
from a sulfur-containing compound which is contaminated with
sulfur, the hydrogenation being carried out in the presence of a
chromium-containing Raney cobalt catalyst and wherein R is a
radical selected from the group consisting of Het-, Het-NH-,
Het-Alk- and Het-Alk-O- and wherein Het- is a mono- or by-cyclic
nitrogen-containing unsaturated heterocyclic radical, Alk- being
a straight or branched chain alkylene radical of up to about 15
carbon atoms and -Ar- being a phenylene or a naphthylene radical.
8. A method according to claim 1 wherein the compound
R-Ar-NO is contaminated with from about 50 to 10,000 ppm of
2
sulfur.
THE REFERENCES
The prior art references relied on by the examiner are:
Petro 3,997,478 Dec. 14, 1976
Lentz et al. (Lentz) 4,929,737 May 29, 1990
(filed Feb. 3, 1988)
Leopold Horner et al. (Horner), Chemical Abstract 105:114375t,
"Hydrogen transfer. 73. Hydrogenolysis studies of sulfur and
phosphorus compounds with Raney nickel," 105 General Organic
Chemistry 615 (1986).
THE ISSUE
The sole issue presented is whether the examiner erred in
rejecting claims 1 through 13 under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as
unpatentable over the combined disclosures of Lentz, Horner and
Petro. According to the examiner, the Lentz patent constitutes
-2-
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