In this installment of the "Looking at Patent Law" articles, we present a case study of a patented invention for a high-rate pulse reverse electrodeposition process for battery charging and electrowinning while avoiding the adverse effects of dendrite formation. The subject invention aligns with an important focus of The Electrochemical Society (ECS) on sustainable technologies and with the technical interests of several divisions, including Battery(BATT), Energy Technology (ETD), Electrodeposition (ELDP), Industrial Electrochemistry and Electrochemical Engineering (IE&EE), and Physical and Analytical Electrochemistry (PAE). The case illustrates avoiding United States Patent & Trademark (USPTO) rejections with a detailed understanding of the prior art and the nuances between technical obviousness and legal obviousness. In addition, the case provides an example where patent drawings and the corresponding technical manuscript drawing are essentially the same. Further, the case illustrates that claims directed to the same statutory class, in this case "method" claims, may still be subjected to an election/restriction requirement. Finally, the case introduces ECS members to an emerging technology of interest to both academia and industry.

In this installment of the “Looking at Patent Law” articles, we present a case study of a patented invention for electrochemical dewatering of cellulosic nanomaterials including cellulosic nanocrystals (CNCs), microfibrilated cellulose (MFC), nanofibrilated cellulose (NFC), and bacterial cellulose (BC). The subject invention aligns with an important focus of The Electrochemical Society (ECS) on sustainability and the technical interests of several divisions, including Battery (BATT), Corrosion (CORR), Dielectric Science and Technology (DS&T), Electronics and Photonics (EPD), Energy Technology (ETD), Industrial Electrochemistry and Electrochemical Engineering (IE&EE), Luminescence and Display Materials (LDM), Nanocarbons (NANO), Organic and Biological Electrochemistry (OBE), Physical and Analytical Electrochemistry (PAE), and Sensor (SENS). The case introduces ECS members to an emerging technology of interest to both academia and industry. The case study begins with a brief synopsis of the background of the invention followed by 1) summary of several drawings and the specification of the invention, 2) inventor assignment and power of attorney designations, 3) march-in rights for government sponsored research, 4) submission of the Invention Disclosure Statement (IDS) and associated Duty of Candor, 5) summary of the non-final office action rejecting the patent application for obviousness, and 6) applicant response and allowance of the patent application. The case study illustrates the use of adding limitations from the specification to the independent claim to overcome an obviousness rejection. In addition, the case illustrates the differences between patent drawings and the corresponding technical drawing. With this case study, we hope to de-mystify the patent prosecution process and better prepare electrochemical and solid-state scientists, engineers and technologists to interact with their patent counsel regarding their inventions.

For over 122 years, The Electrochemical Society and its members have been dedicated to advancing innovation. It is a foundational aspect of what ECS does. In recognition of our commitment to advancing innovation, and to help inspire the next generation of thought-leaders in ECS's technical domain, the Society is proud to announce a special symposium taking place at the 250th ECS meeting: "Celebrating Electrochemical and Solid-State Science Innovations: Commercialization of Processes and Products."

In this installment of the “Looking at Patent Law” series, we present a case study of the prosecution events of U.S. Patent No. 11,788,193 directed towards simultaneous “Electroreduction of Carbon Dioxide and Electrooxidation of Hydrocarbons." The subject invention aligns with the research interest in sustainability matters by The Electrochemical Society and its members. The case study begins with a brief synopsis of the background of the invention followed by 1) summary of the drawing and the specification of the invention, 2) inventor assignment and power of attorney designations, 3) submission of the Invention Disclosure Statement (IDS) and associated Duty of Candor, 4) summary of the multiple non-final/final office actions rejecting the patent application, and 5) applicant response and allowance of the patent application. The case study illustrates the use of Request for Continued Examination (RCE) to continue the prosecution of the subject patent application after the USPTO issues a final rejection. With this case study, we hope to de-mystify the patent prosecution process and better prepare electrochemical and solid-state scientists, engineers and technologists to interact with their patent counsel regarding their inventions.

The author’s perspective is primarily derived from work with colleagues at Faraday Technology, Inc., a company he founded with the vision of developing pulse current/pulse reverse current (PC/PRC) based industrial plating innovations. DC plating processes generally require additives which must be monitored and replenished in order to ensure deposit properties. Due to the elimination of difficult to control/monitor additives, PC/PRC plating processes are more robust and easily controlled, less costly and/or safer and cleaner for workers and the environment. The initial vision evolved to include PC/PRC industrial surface finishing applications. PC/PRC enabled additive-free electrolytes for industrial plating and surface finishing applications are summarized. Emerging industrial applications of PC/PRC electrolysis beyond plating and surface finishing are presented

In this installment of the "Looking at Patent Law" articles, we present a case study of a patented invention for an improved electrochemical machining process based on combining magnetic field waveforms, ultrasonic motion, and pulsed electric field waveforms. The subject invention aligns with the technical interests of several divisions of The Electrochemical Society (ECS), including Corrosion (CORR), Industrial Electrochemistry and Electrochemical Engineering (IE&EE), and Physical and Analytical Electrochemistry (PAE). The case illustrates overcoming prior art obviousness rejections by incorporating dependent claim limitations and a limitation from the specification into the main independent claim. In addition, the case illustrates an inventor-initiated exception to avoid the 18-month publication requirement by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The case also introduces ECS members to an emerging technology of interest to industry.

In this installment of the "Looking at Patent Law" series, we present a case study of the prosecution events of U.S. Patent No. 12,065,379; "Decarbonized Cement Blends." The subject invention aligns with an important focus of The Electrochemical Society (ECS) on sustainability and the technical interests of several divisions including Energy Technology (ETD), Industrial Electrochemistry and Electrochemical Engineering (IE&EE), and Physical and Analytical Electrochemistry (PAE). Additionally, the case introduces ECS members to an emerging technology of interest to industry. The case study begins with a brief synopsis of the background of the invention followed by 1) summary of several drawings and the specification of the invention, 2) inventor assignment and power of attorney designations, 3) march-in rights for government sponsored research, 4) submission of the Invention Disclosure Statement (IDS) and associated Duty of Candor, 5) summary of the non-final office action rejecting the patent application for obviousness, and 6) applicant response and allowance of the patent application. The case study illustrates the use of adding limitations from a dependent claim to the independent claim to overcome an obviousness rejection. In addition, the case illustrates an applicant-initiated request for prioritized examination for patent applications addressing environmental issues. With this case study, we hope to de-mystify the patent prosecution process and better prepare electrochemical and solid-state scientists, engineers and technologists to interact with their patent counsel regarding their inventions.

Introduction to the Special Issue on on Commercialization of Electrochemistry and Material Science Technologies

Cellulose is the most abundant biomass material in nature utilized for the manufacturing of cellulosic nanomaterials that exhibit great potential in a variety of industrial applications. Although cellulosic nanomaterial is cost-effective to produce, it is not economical to ship long distances while containing significant water content (>95 wt.%). Therefore, a need has been identified by manufacturers to develop energy-efficient, dewatering or drying of cellulosic nanomaterials. Accordingly, Faraday Technology in collaboration with GranBio USA, manufacturers of cellulosic nanomaterials, is addressing this need by developing electrochemical based dewatering system and process to dewater cellulosic nanomaterials while maintaining material properties when dried and re-dispersed. Energy-efficient (70% reduction in energy requirements compared to thermal dewatering), environmentally beneficial (51% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions), economical (31% reduction in cost/ton of dried material), and industrially viable electrochemical based dewatering approach to process up to 2 tons/year of dried nanocellulose at alpha-scale has been demonstrated. The approach is capable of achieving >50 wt.% final solids and 18 wt.% final solids, that could be rehydrated under vortex and confirmed for re-dispersibility. Material properties (structure, particle size) were maintained by the dewatered cellulosic nanomaterials. Specifically, this talk will discuss the results of these advancements. Acknowledgements: The financial support of DOE Contract No. DE-SC0018787 is acknowledged.

Among the numerous technological advances sought in order to facilitate human exploration and habitation outside of earth’s atmosphere, solutions and innovations are needed for processing resources locally to support sustainable and long duration space missions. Such in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) is aimed at reducing the payload mass during launch and eliminate the need for ground support for long-term missions and ultimately space colonization. Disinfection needs is an area of particular need, which is currently accomplished through the use of pre-packaged, disposable, wetted disinfection wipes. These items represent an appreciable carry-along mass and disposal/replacement burden requiring ground support. Therefore, a system is desired that could utilize onboard utilities to create disinfecting solutions to eliminate storage/disposable problems of the wetted wipes and further reduce the astronaut’s dependence on earth-based supplies. Faraday Technology Inc. is addressing this challenge by demonstrating an in-situ approach, which utilizes on-board supplies of air and water for on demand electrochemical generation of hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen peroxide is well-established disinfectant with non-toxic decomposition products (viz., O 2 and H 2 O), that is safe enough for human contact to be sold commercially as a 1-5 w/w% solution, which makes it an ideal disinfecting solution for closed space environments. Faraday has continued to improve the TRL by scaling the electrochemical peroxide generation system from a sub-scale to alpha-scale process in order to deliver 1 L per day of ~2 w/w% hydrogen peroxide for disinfectant applications from DI water feed-stream with air as a feed source [1],[2],[3],[4] . These electrolytes were then sent to NASA for microbial control property characterization. This system eliminates the need to ferry disinfectant wipes to manned space capsules and is a critical enabling technology for future moon-based missions and beyond. Specifically, this talk will discuss the results of these advancements. Acknowledgements: Financial support of NASA Contracts NNX16CA43P, NNX17CJ12C, 80NSSC20C0070, and 80NSSC23CA036 is acknowledged. References: [1] Vijapur, Santosh H., et al. "Electrochemical peroxide generation." ECS Transactions 77.11 (2017): 947. [2] Vijapur, Santosh, et al. "In-Situ Resource Utilization for Electrochemical Generation of Hydrogen Peroxide for Disinfection." 49th International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2019. [3] Nelson, George J., et al. "Electrochemistry for Space Life Support." The Electrochemical Society Interface 29.1 (2020): 47. [4] Vijapur, Santosh, et al. "In-Situ Resource Utilization for Electrochemical Generation of Hydrogen Peroxide for Disinfection." 50th International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2021.

In this installment of the “Looking at Patent Law” series, we present a case study of the prosecution events of U.S. Patent No. 9,559,375 directed towards “Iron Flow Battery”. This invention aligns with several divisions of the Electrochemical Society (ECS), including Industrial Electrochemistry and Electrochemical Engineering (IE&EE), Battery (BATT), Energy Technology (ETD) and Electrodeposition (ELDP). The case study begins with a brief synopsis of the background of the invention followed by 1) summary of key drawings and the specification of the invention, 2) inventor assignment and power of attorney designations, 3) submission of the Invention Disclosure Statement (IDS) and associated Duty of Candor, 4) summary of the non-final office action (NF-OA) and rejection, and 5) applicant response and allowance of the patent application. The case study illustrates overcoming lack of “novelty” and “obviousness” rejections by combining the limitation of dependent claims with the independent claim. With this case study, we hope to de-mystify the patent prosecution process and better prepare electrochemical and solid-state scientists, engineers and technologists to interact with their patent counsel regarding their inventions.

Radiant energy conversion and storage eliminate the mass transfer process induced power output limitation, and open a new vista for energy utilization. An effective system for harvesting radiant energy from both solar and thermal radiation will be beneficial for further radiant energy utilization. On the other hand, space observatory missions require low-reflectivity surfaces/coatings for space-borne instruments, such as seeker telescopes, optical sensors, etc., to minimize stray and reflected light on targeted telescope and baffle materials and construction. The excellent optical, thermal, and mechanical properties of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) make them as ideal coating materials for absorbing the broadband spectrum across UV-Vis-IR regions. In this presentation, Faraday Technology will discuss an innovative electrophoretic deposition (EPD) manufacturing process, based on the use of pulsed electric fields, for controlled, reproducible, scalable deposition of a wide variety of carbon nanotube based coatings across a broad range of substrates, geometries and sizes (Figure 1 a). The effects of waveforms, electrolytes, substrates, etc. on the formation of robust and uniform coating will be discussed in this talk. The optical properties, and environmental survivability of carbon nanotube coatings will be demonstrated via a variety of testing or characterizations. The CNT coatings show the total hemispherical reflection of 0.5% - 1% across UV-Vis to near infrared (NIR) wavebands, which is much lower than the reflectance of the typically used Z306 black paint (Figure 1 b). These CNT coatings also withstood simulated launch conditions vibrational tests, and demonstrated no weight loss and optical degradation. Furthermore, the CNT coatings were evaluated for atomic oxygen erosion resistance in a simulated low earth orbit (LEO) environment, and showed enhanced resilience when compared to Kapton and HOPG. Faraday will also introduce their applications in low-reflective coatings and solar thermal absorbers for radiant energy harvesting and conversion. In summary, a scalable EPD manufacturing process for fabricating carbon nanotube based coatings have been developed at Faraday for the applications in the field of low-reflective coatings and broadband solar thermal absorbers. Acknowledgements: The financial support from NASA SBIR program through contracts No. 80NNSC18P2062 & 80NSSC19C0177, DARPA SBIR program through grant No. W31P4Q-22-C-0014, DOD MDA STTR program through grant No. HQ0147-19-C-7065, and DOD Air Force SBIR program through grant No. FA9550-22-P-0015 are acknowledged. Figure 1

Patents often offer significant competitive advantage for inventions on the path from discovery to product. Specifically, the inventors/owners of a patent are given the right to prevent other parties from making, using or selling the subject invention. The claims of the patent define the scope of competitive advantage for the subject invention. Regarding patents,[1] “...the name of the game is the claim.” The wording of claims has been called,[2] “...one of the most bizarre sentence structures in the English language.” And, the courts have noted that,[3] “...the nature of language makes it impossible to capture the essence of a thing [invention] in a patent application [claim] .” Consequently, electrochemical scientists, engineers and technologists involved in transitioning discoveries to product are well advised to understand the meaning and scope of the claims in their patented inventions. In this presentation, we will compare and contrast claims as analogous to real estate property. We will provide a brief history of U.S. patent law in terms of the requirements of claims in a patent application. We will review claim construction, i.e., establishing the meaning and scope of an invention, beginning with the inventor internal Invention Disclosure, the preparation of the patent application with a patent attorney, and the examination of the patent application by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. Once the patent application is allowed and issues as a patent, the meaning and scope of the claim is settled, unless the patent becomes the subject of a patent validity or infringement challenge. During patent infringement challenges, the meaning and scope of the patent claims are determined in order to decide if the patent is valid and/or if infringement has occurred. We will review the rationale and evolution of claim construction from a factual inquiry by juries to a matter of law determined by the courts. We will present the hierarchy of factors used by the courts during claim construction. Finally, we will conclude the presentation with a brief review of claim construction during a lithium battery infringement case.[4] We conclude the inventor can play a significant role in claim construction with the initial preparation of the internal Invention Disclosure, the preparation of the patent application with a patent professional, and during the examination of the patent application by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. Acknowledgements: The financial support of Faraday Technology, Inc. corporate R&D is gratefully acknowledged. References: Judge Giles S. Rich, “The Extent of the Protection and Interpretation of Claims-American Perspectives” Int’l Rev. Indus. Prop. & Copyright L., 21: 497-499 (1990). S. Jay Plager “Challenges for Intellectual Property Law in the Twenty-First Century: Indeterminacy and Other Problems” U. IL L. Rev. 69-81 (2001). Festo Corp. v. Shoketsu Kinzoku Kogyo Kabushiki Co., 535 U.S. 722 (2002). The Board of Regents of the University of Texas System and Hydro-Quebec v A123 Systems, Inc., Black & Decker Corp., and Black & Decker (U.S.) Inc. U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division, Civil Action No. 3:06-CV-1655-B March 29, 2011.

In this installment of the "Looking at Patent Law " series, we illustrate a high-level perspective of the impact of electrochemical science and engineering on innovation and technology development, as evidenced by inclusion within the patent literature. We searched the USPTO patent data base for the past thirty-one years using commercially available software. The search was limited to U.S. patents and included the Boolean search string was "electrochem* OR electroly* " for U.S. patents issued within the date range of 01/01/1991 to 12/31/2021. Over the past ten years "electrochemical " patents represent nearly 5% of "all " issued patents. The top assignees of the "electrochemical " patents attend and/or present at biannual ECS meetings and publish in ECS journals. Notable top inventors of "electrochemical " patents include: 1) Dr. Shumpei Yamazaki with over 800 patents, 2) Dr. Adam Heller, the inventor of the electrochemical-based glucose monitor, and 3) Dr. Esther Takeuchi, inventor of the implantable cardiac defibrillator.

The inherent advantages of MEMS (micro-electromechanical system) technology, including small size and cost-effective fabrication, make it ideal for numerous applications in a wide range of industries ranging from defense, automotive, medical, to consumer industries. For applications that require self-powered MEMS electronics, an integrated energy storage device is required. Due to their small size, excellent cycle life and high-power density, miniature supercapacitors are an excellent choice for such an integrated energy storage device. The development of electrode materials and electrode fabrication processes for supercapacitors are thus critical for the practical applications of MEMS technology in electronics. In this presentation, Faraday Technology Inc. and Duke University will discuss a novel 3D graphenated carbon nanotube (g-CNT) network with pseudocapacitive coatings as the electrode materials for fabricating high energy density MEMS supercapacitors. The g-CNT has a high surface area three-dimensional framework of the CNTs coupled with the high edge density of graphene (Figure 1 A), which represents a potential maximum in both charge density and surface area, and thus provide the enhanced capacitance. An innovative electrophoretic deposition (EPD) manufacturing process, based on the use of pulsed electric fields, has been developed for controlled, reproducible, and scalable deposition of g-CNTs on interdigitated electrodes (Figure 1 B). In addition, pseudocapacitive coatings (such as MnO2) have been electrodeposited on the g-CNT coated electrode to further increasing supercapacitor energy density. Figure 1 C shows no redox peaks, which is important for using this structure as a supercapacitor application. The square shape of the cyclic voltammogram shows that ions experience free flow through the 3-D g-CNT structure. The Charge/Discharge curves (Figure 1 D) indicate the areal energy density of g-CNT/MnO2 coated electrodes (either 50 or 100 cyclic voltametric deposition cycles) are 45 and 93 times higher than g-CNT coated electrodes, respectively. In summary, a scalable manufacturing process for fabricating g-CNT network with pseudocapacitive coatings as electrodes has been demonstrated and shown great potential in producing high energy density MEMS supercapacitors for energy harvesting applications. Acknowledgements: The financial support of DOD DMEA STTR program through grant No. HQ0727-21-P-0029 is acknowledged and National Institutes of Health under award number 1R21EY031271 is acknowledged. The information, data, or work presented herein was funded in part by National Aeronautics and Space Administration under Grant No. 80NSSC19K1027, the views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof. Figure 1

Deferred-action batteries, also known as reserve batteries, fulfill a unique role among energy storage technologies in which long-term shelf life (years, decades) is required while ensuring optimal performance upon activation. This objective is typically achieved through isolation of the electroactive components until battery operation is desired. Commonly, the electrolyte is isolated from one or both electrodes, and thus, limiting premature degradation and parasitic side-reactions until battery power is needed. During the reserve battery activation process, electrolyte is delivered to the electrode(s), which enable ionic conduction between the anode and cathode, and thus permitting normal operations analogous to a non-reserve design – which is ubiquitous among off-the-shelf batteries. The feasible activation mechanisms are largely determined by battery chemistries and material properties, which give rise to several classifications including: thermal, spin-activated, and gas-activated reserve type batteries. Reserve battery activation under these various classifications require ancillary components and specific conditions which contribute excess complexity, weight, and volume towards the overall battery design and thus, significant penalties in reliability, specific and volumetric densities are incurred. Improvements in reserve battery technology must include strategies for limiting these penalties through innovated electrolyte delivery designs tailored for modern, high-energy, high-power density lithium-based batteries. Herein, we report a novel electrolyte delivery mechanism facilitated by an electrochemical aperture. The electrochemical aperture serves as a physical barrier, isolating the liquid, lithium-containing electrolyte. Reserve battery activation proceeds via lithium transport, inducing physical transformations via the electrochemical aperture, which permit liquid electrolyte injection into the appropriate compartment(s). Accordingly, ionic conduction between the anode and cathode is established, and ultimately resulting in battery activation and enabling typical battery operation. Strategies for quantifying and reducing activation time via material optimization will be explored. Acknowledgements: Faraday Technology acknowledges the technical assistance of Dr. Joseph P. Fellner at the Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson AFB (Dayton, OH) under Air Force Contract No. FA8650-19-P2024 (Phase I SBIR) and FA8650-21-C-2300 (Phase II SBIR). Figure 1

Space-borne instruments, such as seeker telescopes, optical sensors, etc., need to minimize stray and reflected light for facilitating space observatory missions. Durable low-reflectivity surfaces/coatings are thus required for suppressing unwanted light within these optical systems. The low-reflectivity coatings need to withstand harsh space environments, including UV radiation, atomic oxygen, vacuum, etc. The excellent mechanical, thermal, optical, and electrical properties of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) make them as ideal coating materials for obtaining low reflectivity surfaces for space applications. In this presentation, Faraday Technology Inc. will discuss an innovative electrophoretic deposition (EPD) manufacturing process, based on the use of pulsed electric fields, for controlled, reproducible, scalable application of low reflective CNT based coatings. The low-reflectivity CNT coatings have been successfully deposited on a variety of geometries: flat coupons, curved surfaces, sharp edges, and internal and external surface of square tubes using the FARADAYIC® EPD process with different anode-cathode configurations (Figure 1 A). The CNT coatings show the total hemispherical reflection of 0.5% - 1% across visible to near infrared (NIR) wavebands, which is much lower than the reflectance of the typically used Z306 black paint (Figure 1 B). Most importantly, the CNT coating shows minimal (~0.14-0.32%) reflectance increase after 5000 equivalent solar hours (ESH) UV/VUV illumination (Figure 1B). As a comparison, Z306 black paint shows ~2.40-4.05 % reflectance increases with same ESH UV/VUV illumination. Figure 1C indicates the CNT coatings has minimal 0-0.0015 (1/sr) BRDF increase in scatter. These CNT coatings also withstood simulated launch conditions vibrational tests, and demonstrated no weight loss and optical degradation. Furthermore, the CNT coatings were evaluated for atomic oxygen erosion resistance in a simulated low earth orbit (LEO) environment, and showed enhanced resilience when compared to Kapton and HOPG. In summary, a scalable manufacturing process for fabricating CNT based coatings with low reflectivity across visible to near infrared wavebands has been demonstrated and shown great potential in facilitating space observatory missions by minimizing stray and reflected light on targeted telescope and baffle materials and construction. The CNT based coatings can also be utilized as broadband absorbers for solar thermal power generation and storage, solar-driven steam generation for sanitization and water purification, and so on. Acknowledgements: The financial support of NASA SBIR program through contracts No. 80NNSC18P2062 & 80NSSC19C0177 is acknowledged. The authors acknowledge Alan Hopkins, Peter Fuqua, and Amber Hennessy from the Aerospace Corporation for simulated launch conditions vibration tests, optical characterization, and UV radiation effect tests. David Oakes and Daniel Hewett from Physical Sciences Inc. are acknowledged for the atomic oxygen erosion tests on the CNT based coatings. Figure 1

In this installment of the “Looking at Patent Law” series, we present a case study of the prosecution of U.S. Patent No. 9,616,142 directed towards “Electrochemical Eradication of Microbes on Surfaces of Objects” jointly assigned to The Research Foundation for the State University of New York and Syracuse University. This case was chosen to coincide with the focus of this issue of Interface on diversity and inclusion in electrochemical technology, science and engineering. Notably, several of the inventors are female, including Dr. Esther S. Takeuchi who is a prolific inventor with numerous awards, honors and recognitions. The case study begins with a brief synopsis of the background of the invention followed by 1) a discussion of the patent applications associated with the invention, 2) inventor assignment and power of attorney designations, 3) submission of an information disclosure statement and duty of candor, 4) summary of office actions, 5) summary of applicant response to non-final rejection, and 6) allowance of the patent application. With this case study, we hope to de-mystify the patent prosecution process and better prepare electrochemical and solid-state scientists, engineers and technologists to interact with their patent counsel regarding their inventions.

In this installment of the “Looking at Patent Law” series, we present a case study of the prosecution of U.S. Patent No. 7,507,837 directed towards “Process for Performing an Isolated Pd(II)-Mediated Oxidation Reaction” assigned to CombiMatrix Corporation of Mukilteo, Washington. This case was chosen to coincide with the focus of this issue of Interface on the Organic and Biological Electrochemistry (OBE) division of the Electrochemical Society (ECS). Notably, Prof. Kevin Moeller, a co-inventor on the subject patent, is a member-at-large of OBE. The case study begins with a brief synopsis of the background of the invention followed by 1) a discussion of the parent and child patent applications associated with the invention, 2) inventor assignment and power of attorney designations, 3) summary of office actions, 4) summary of applicant response to non-final rejection, and 5) allowance of the patent application. The case study discusses double patenting and the applicant’s response by filling a terminal disclaimer to traverse the rejection. With this case study, we hope to de-mystify the patent prosecution process and better prepare electrochemical and solid-state scientists, engineers and technologists to interact with their patent counsel regarding their inventions.

Cellulosic nanomaterials exhibit great potential in various applications due to their unique properties, abundant availability, and low production cost. Although cost effective to produce it is costly to ship, primarily due to the excess of water (>95 wt.%) in growth media necessary to produce the cellulosic nanomaterials. Therefore, a need has been identified by cellulosic material providers to develop energy-efficient, dewatering or drying of cellulosic nanomaterials, “as cellulosic nanomaterials are not economical to ship long distances while containing significant water content”. Moreover, the dewatered or dried cellulosic nanomaterials should be readily re-dispersed in water without any changes in its functional properties. Faraday Technology in collaboration with AVAPCO, answer this need by developing an economical manufacturing method and apparatus for electrochemical dewatering of cellulosic nanomaterials including cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) and cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs). Specifically, our innovation is directed towards dewatering of CNCs and CNFs, not drying. AVAPCO has indicated that dewatering to 20-30 wt.% solids would be the end product for numerous applications such as cosmetics and paper processing. Using innovative reactor designs, we demonstrated the feasibility of a cost-effective, industrially viable, and energy efficient ElectroDewatering approach capable of generating 20 wt.% final solids, that was rehydrated under vortex and confirmed for re-dispersibility. Material properties (structure, particle size) were maintained by the dewatered cellulosic nanomaterials. Implementing sophisticated electric fields, we reduced energy use by 50% compared to conventional constant voltage approaches at similar or higher dewatering performance. Specifically, this talk will discuss the results of these advancements. Acknowledgements: The financial support of DOE Contract No. DE-SC0018787 is acknowledged.