Patent ID: 8906266

Claim:
A process for the preparation of hydrogen and carbon monoxide containing gas from a gaseous carbonaceous feedstock comprising the following steps: (a) auto-thermal reforming a first gaseous carbonaceous feedstock thereby obtaining a first gaseous mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide, (b) catalytic steam reforming a second gaseous carbonaceous feedstock to obtain a second gaseous mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide by feeding steam and the second gaseous carbonaceous feedstock through a first set of numerous microchannels provided with a steam reforming catalyst and feeding the first gaseous mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide through a second set of numerous microchannels, wherein the first and second set of microchannels are oriented such that the required heat for the steam reforming reaction in the first set of microchannels is provided by convective heat exchange from the second set of microchannels, thereby obtaining the hydrogen and carbon monoxide containing gas as the effluent of the second set of microchannels, wherein the first and second set of microchannels are arranged alternately to ensure good thermal contact between the channels and wherein the microchannels are formed by channels in individual steel plates which are stacked and diffusion bonded together and wherein the steel plates are made of an metal alloy comprising between 0 and 20 wt % iron, between 0 and 5 wt % aluminium, between 0 and 5 wt % silicon, between 20 and 50 wt % chromium and at least 35 wt % nickel.