Appeal No. 1997-1869
Application 08/215,462
Hittel et al. and (2) under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as unpatentable over Lundquist. We vacate the rejections2
and remand the application to the examiner.
The claimed subject matter relates to a process for cleaning and reclaiming the plastic used to
make plastic containers so the plastic may be recycled. The process involves cutting the containers into
pieces, placing the pieces into a washer with an aqueous solvent, agitating the solvent to loosen,
suspend and remove residual material such as organic liquids (e.g.,motor oil) or solid waste from the
pieces, draining the solvent from the pieces, separating the solvent from the organic liquid and solid
waste, regenerating the solvent for recycling it into the process, recovering the organic liquid, recovering
the solid waste, and passing the cleaned plastic pieces to a recycling process.
We reproduce independent claims 11, 21 and 27 (broadest to narrowest) below:
27. A process for cleaning residual material such as a liquid organic phase
and a solid waste phase from plastic containers for recycling said plastic
comprising the steps of:
a) dividing said plastic containers into relatively large pieces that
are small enough to allow as aqueous solvent to reach each
area of said plastic pieces,
b) loading said plastic pieces into a vessel with an aqueous solvent
adapted to loosen and suspend said residual material,
c) agitating said aqueous solvent containing said plastic pieces to
loosen, suspend and remove said residual material from said
plastic pieces,
d) separating said aqueous solvent containing said suspended
residual material from said plastic pieces by draining said
aqueous solvent from said plastic pieces,
Apparently, other rejections were made. Since they were not presented in the Examiner’s Answer, we2
consider them to have been withdrawn.
2
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