295.    BONE, W. A., AND GARDNER, J. B.  Comparative Studies of the Slow Combustion of Methane, Methyl Alcohol, Formaldehyde, and Formic Acid.  Proc. Roy. Soc. (London), vol. A154, 1936, pp. 297-328; Chem. Abs., vol. 30, 1936, p. 4461.

                  The induction period in the slow combustion of CH4 at 390°-420° (1) is not influenced by preheating the reactants or exposure of the reacting medium to ultraviolet light, (2) is lengthened by increasing the surface; volume ratio of a SiO2 reaction vessel, (3) is shortest with a 2CH4+O2 medium, (4) is characterized by the successive formation of small equilibrium amounts of MeOH and CH2O, and is greatly shortened by additions of either of them or of NO2, and (5) is markedly lengthened by additions of 1.  The slow oxidation of MeOH was much faster and less influenced by the SiO2 surface that that of CH4 at 390°.   It shows no appreciable induction period but may be speeded up by small additions of CH2O or NO2.  2MeOH+O2 is the most reactive medium, its end products being principally steam and the oxides of C, with a high CO:CO2 ratio.  A still higher oxidation rate was found for CH2O, which showed no induction period even at 275°.  HCO2H as well as performic acid and formaldehyde peroxide were formed as intermediate products.  The slowest oxidation rate was observed with HCO2H, the gaseous end products being principally CO, CO2, steam, and H2.  The results for CH4 are explained on the basis of the hydroxylation theory.  No sign of an initial peroxidation of the CH4 was found in any of the experiments.