Bulk nickel catalysts and processes for the production of syngas

A method of catalytically converting a C1-C5 hydrocarbon comprising at least about 50 vol % methane, in the presence of O2, to a product gas mixture comprising CO and H2, the method comprising:

• mixing a gaseous C1-C5 hydrocarbon-containing feedstock and an oxygen-containing feedstock to provide a reactant gas mixture feedstock having a carbon:oxygen ratio of about 1.25:1 to about 3.3:1;
• in a millisecond contact time reactor, contacting said reactant gas mixture feedstock with a catalytically effective amount of a self-supported reduced metallic nickel monolith catalyst having sufficient transparency to allow reactant and/or product gases to flow through a catalyst bed of said reactor at such a rate that the contact time for a portion of reactant gas mixture that contacts said monolith catalyst is no more than about 10 milliseconds when said catalyst is used in said reactor;
• passing said reactant gas mixture feedstock over said monoliths at such flow rate that the contact time for a portion of reactant gas mixture that contacts said monoliths is not more than about 10 milliseconds;
• during said contacting, maintaining said monolith catalyst at a temperature of about 600-1,200° C.;
• during said contacting, maintaining said reactant gas mixture at a pressure of about 100-12,500 kPa;
• and
• during said contacting, optionally, adjusting said hydrocarbon and said oxygen concentration in said reactant gas mixture feedstock to a carbon:oxygen ratio is about 1.25:1 to about 3.3:
• 1, such that the molar ratio of H2:CO in said product gas mixture is about 2:1.

A method of making a self-supported metallic nickel monolith catalyst that is active for catalyzing the partial oxidation of methane in the presence of O2 to CO and H2 under partial oxidation promoting conditions of reactant gas composition and pressure, flow rate and temperature, the method comprising:

• shaping a bulk nickel metal material such that a metallic nickel monolith is formed having a sufficiently transparent structure to allow reactant and/or product gases to flow through at such a rate that the contact time of a portion of a reactant gas mixture that contacts said shaped bulk nickel material is no more than about 10 milliseconds, when said monolith is used in a catalyst bed of a short contact time reactor;
• reducing said metallic nickel to yield an activated nickel monolith catalyst;
• and,
• optionally, maintaining said nickel monolith catalyst in an oxidatively reduced condition until said catalyst is used in a short contact time syngas reactor for catalyzing the production of CO and H2.