Appeal No. 1995-0770
Application No. 07/929,457
It is also noted that one of the advantages attributed to the method described in Kamath
'703 is that the resulting polymer is substantially free of monomer. See, e.g, column 7,
lines 64-68.
The above method described in Kamath '703 differs from that required by claim 1
on appeal in two respects. First, Kamath '703 does not explicitly describe that aspect of
claim 1(3) which requires pressurizing the sealed reaction vessel by a further addition of
an inert gas to a pressure of from about 20 to about 600 kilopascals above ambient
atmospheric pressure. Second, Kamath '703 does not explicitly describe that the resulting
copolymer is "substantially free of gel formation."
As to the first difference, we point out that Kamath '703 does describe purging the
reaction vessel with an inert gas followed by sealing the reaction vessel. As described in
Kamath '703, the sealed reaction vessel is then subjected to elevated temperatures.
According to the ideal gas law, pV=nRT. Since the sealed system in Kamath '703 is
subjected to elevated temperature, the pressure therein must rise during the
polymerization process. With that thought in mind and keeping in mind that Kamath '703
indicates that the reaction vessel is to be purged with an inert gas prior to sealing, it stands
to reason that Kamath '703 describes a polymerization process which occurs under
elevated pressure in the presence of an inert gas. To determine an optimal pressure to be
used in the process of Kamath '703 and ensure that that pressure is achieved by the
addition of a specific amount of inert gas as required by claim 1 on appeal would have
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