Patent ID: 8242300

Claim:
A process for selective, partial oxidization of methane, the process being a substantially solvent-free process that comprises placing sulfur trioxide and gaseous methane in operative contact with a solid, heterogenous, acidic catalyst material, wherein the solid, heterogenous, acidic catalyst material is a superacid catalyst selected from a perfluorinated organo-sulfonic acid polymer, a composite of a perfluorinated organo-sulfonic acid polymer and a porous inorganic support, and a supported catalyst, the supported catalyst comprising at least one transition metal selected from a group consisting of palladium, vanadium and cerium on a composite of a perfluorinated organo-sulfonic acid polymer and a porous inorganic support, the contact occurring at a combination of temperature, methane pressure and for a length of time sufficient to convert at least a portion of non-gaseous forms of such sulfur trioxide to gaseous sulfur trioxide and selectively and partially oxidize at least a portion of the methane to at least one partial oxidation product selected from a group consisting of methanol and sulfate esters of methanol, the temperature being less than a temperature at which the solid, acidic catalyst material becomes unstable.