Patent ID: 6852307

Claim:
A process for the catalytic oxidation of a hydrocarbonaceous fuel into a conversion product under conditions of non-steady demand of conversion product, wherein a feed mixture comprising the fuel and an oxygen-containing gas is contacted with a catalyst bed, the process comprising: (a) setting the flow rate of the fuel and the flow rate of the oxygen-containing gas in accordance with the demand of conversion product and a pre-determined value of the oxygen/carbon ratio in the feed mixture; (b) determining the actual temperature of the upstream surface of the catalyst bed by measuring the ratio between the light intensities emitted by the upstream surface of the catalyst bed at different wavelength ranges by means of a quick response device comprising an optical pyrometer; (c) generating an output signal that is a function of the difference between the actual temperature and a set point for the temperature; and, (d) using the output signal to adjust the flow rate of the fuel.