Appeal No. 2001-1241 Page 3
Application No. 09/101,234
emulsions. See id., page 2. “The pressed agglomerates produced according to
the prior art do not disintegrate completely in the oil phase . . ., so that the
subsequent addition of water and/or a base results in the formation of mixtures
containing large, lumpy pieces of gel.” Id.
The specification discloses “low-dust, free-flowing granular materials
comprising pulverulent polymer which can be incorporated into oil phases without
the disadvantages described,” making them suitable for use in cosmetics and
pharmaceuticals. Id. “[T]his object is achieved by addition of at least one oil-
soluble component to the pulverulent polymer before or during press
agglomeration to give a granular material which can be dispersed very well in oil
and additionally can be handled without complicated safety measures.” Id.
Discussion
As we interpret it, claim 1 is directed to a granular material made by
pressing a mixture of an oil-soluble component and at least one carboxyl-
containing polymer;1 the polymer in the claimed material is made by free-radical-
initiated copolymerization of a monomer mixture comprising at least three
components: (a) a monoethylenically unsaturated mono- or dicarboxylic acid (50
to 99.93% by weight of the mixture), (b) a compound having at least two
ethylenically unsaturated, nonconjugated double bonds as a cross-linker (0.05 to
5% by weight of the mixture), and (c) an alkyl (meth)acrylate (0.02 to 10% by
1 The language of claim 1 is somewhat ambiguous. For example, the claim refers to both a
“carboxyl-containing polymer as main component” and a “polymer component;” we interpret both
of these phrases to refer to the copolymer comprising monomers (a) through (d). The claim also
states that “use if made of a polymer component;” we interpret this phrase to mean simply that
the claimed granular material comprises the recited polymer component.
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