Appeal No. 2000-0998
Application 08/521,432
(4) trimerizing said ethylene to form 1-hexene;
wherein said solvent added to the reaction vessel consists
essentially of 1-hexene and wherein said solvent added to the
reaction vessel is not removed from the 1-hexene formed by
trimerization.
THE REFERENCE
Reagen et al. (Reagen) 5,523,507 Jun. 4, 1996
(effective filing date on or before Dec. 13, 1991)
THE REJECTION
Claims 1-8 stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as obvious
over Reagen.
OPINION
We reverse the aforementioned rejection. We need to address
only claim 1, which is the sole independent claim.
There is no dispute as to whether Reagen discloses a
catalyst made by contacting components (A) to (D) in the
appellants’ claim 1. The dispute pertains to the 1-hexene
solvent.
Reagen discloses that stable and active catalyst systems can
be formed in the presence of an unsaturated hydrocarbon (col. 12,
lines 65-66). The disclosed unsaturated hydrocarbons include
1-hexene (col. 13, lines 22-23).1 Reagen teaches that the
1 In tests in which the catalyst is prepared in 1-hexene (runs 7010-7013), 1-hexene is
separated from the catalyst and the solvent added to the trimerization reactor is cyclohexane.
3
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