Competitive Reactions of Methyl Radicals in Partial Oxidation of Methane

The partial oxidation of methane known as the Sachsee process, later modified by others several times, is a procedure for the production of acetylene from methane In the course of the process a mixture of methane and pure oxygen in a ratio of 2:1, preheated to 973 K, is fed into a flame reactor, where in an autotherm reaction the combustion takes place within 0.02-0.03 s, producing acetylene (Fig. 1). The product gas is quenched to protect acetylene from polymerization. Acetylene and oxidation products are separated from the cooled product gas by suitable methods (Németh et al, 1987).