Patent ID: 7550635

Claim:
A process for the preparation of hydrogen and a gas containing a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide from methane, said process comprising: (a) partially oxidizing methane via a non-catalyzed reaction to prepare an effluent comprising a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide having a temperature of above 700° C., (b) catalytically steam reforming methane in a zone wherein the feed has a steam to carbon ratio of less than 1 to prepare a steam reforming product having a hydrogen to carbon monoxide molar ratio of greater than 2, wherein heat for the steam reforming reaction is provided by convective heat exchange between the steam reformer reactor zone and the effluent of step (a), and (c) separating hydrogen from part of the steam reforming product of step (b) and feeding part of the steam reforming product of step (b) to step (a).