Method foe the manufacture of

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR THE CONVERSION OF METHANE TO HYDROGEN AND CARBON MONOXIDE WHICH COMPRISES THE STEPS OF PREHEATING METHANE TO A TEMPERATURE BETWEEN ABOUT 200 AND ABOUT 100 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT, REFORMING ABOUT 20 TO ABOUT 50 PER CENT OF THE PREHEATED METHANE WITH STEAM IN A REFORMING ZONE TO PRODUCE CARBON MONOXIDE AND HYDROGEN, PASSING THE REFORMING EFFLUENT AT A TEMPERATURE BETWEEN ABOUT 1100 AND ABOUT 1600 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT INTO A COMBUSTION ZONE, PARTIALLY BURNING SUBSTANTIALLY ALL OF THE UNREACTED METHANE IN THE REFORMING EFFLUENT AT A TEMPERATURE BETWEEN ABOUT 1800 AND ABOUT 3000 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT WITH OXYGEN SUPPLIED TO THE COMBUSTION ZONE IN A RATIO OF FROM ABOUT 0.5 TO ABOUT 0.7 MOL OF OXYGEN PER MOL OF UNREACTED METHANE TO PRODUCE MONOXIDE, MAINTAINING THE PRESSURE IN CARBON MONOXIDE, MAINTAINING THE PRESSURE IN THE REFORMING AND COMBUSTION ZONES BETWEEN ABOUT 10 AND ABOUT 800 POUNDS PER SQUARE INCH GAGE, COUNTERCURRENTLY PASSING THE COMBUSTION PRODUCTS IN INDIRECT HEAT EXCHANGE WITH THE REACTION MIXTURE IN THE REFORMING ZONE WHEREBY THE EXOTHERMIC PARTIAL COMBUSTION REACTION SUPPLIES HEAT TO THE ENDOTHERMIC REFORMATION, AND WITHDRAWING A PRODUCT COMPRISING HYDROGEN AND CARBON MONOXIDE IN A MOLAR RATIO BETWEEN ABOUT 1:1 AND ABOUT 3:1.