Appeal No. 2006-2023 Page 5
Application No. 10/650,785
dispersing the resin in the water to enable adsorption of the dissolved
organic carbon onto the resin; and (c) separating the resin loaded with the
dissolved organic carbon from the water. (Page 2, line 25 to page 3, line
1.)
17. The ‘044 disclosure states that “[t]he ion-exchange resin is dispersed in
the water so as to provide the maximum surface area of resin to adsorb
the DOC [dissolved organic carbon].” (Page 3, lines 3-5.)
18. The ‘044 disclosure further enlightens one skilled in the relevant art that
the separating step may be achieved by settling, screening, or a
combination thereof. (Page 3, lines 16-17.)
19. The ‘044 disclosure describes regeneration of “spent” ion-exchange resin.
(Page 7, lines 4-11.)
20. The ‘044 disclosure reads at page 12, line 30 through page 13, line 13 as
follows (emphasis added):
[i]n a further aspect the invention provides a process for the
treatment of water which includes the following steps:
a. adding an ion-exchange resin to water containing dissolved
organic carbon;
b. dispersing said resin in the water to enable adsorption of the
dissolved organic carbon onto the ion-exchange resin;
c. separating the ion-exchange resin loaded with dissolved
organic carbon from the water; and
d. subjecting the water to membrane filtration.
In an alternative process, steps c. & d. above may be combined so
that the membrane effects separation of the resin while
simultaneously filtering the water.
21. Based on this description in the ‘044 application, the appellants argue that claims
1-26 are entitled to the 8 September 1995 earlier filing date of the ‘044
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Next
Last modified: November 3, 2007