Patent ID: 7772450

Claim:
A process for converting a feed containing methane to syngas and aromatic hydrocarbon(s), the process comprising: (a) contacting a feed containing methane with a dehydrocyclization catalyst under conditions effective to produce a first effluent comprising said aromatic hydrocarbons, residual methane, and H 2 , wherein said first effluent has a concentration of aromatic rings which is at least 5 wt % greater than the concentration of aromatic rings in said feed; (b) recovering at least a portion of said aromatic hydrocarbons from said first effluent; and, (c) reacting at least part of said H 2 and said residual methane from said first effluent with an oxygen-containing species to produce a second effluent having H 2 and CO, wherein the total number of moles of H 2 and CO in said second effluent is greater than the total number of moles of H 2 and CO in said first effluent.