Activation of methane: A selective industrial route to methanesulfonic acid

Methane oxidation on the plus side Industrial conversion of methane to alcohol derivatives involves a circuitous route that starts with overoxidation to carbon monoxide. More direct approaches in highly acidic media have shown promise at small scale but are not cost-effective. Díaz-Urrutia and Ott describe a reaction at pilot-plant scale that combines methane and sulfur trioxide directly in sulfuric acid to form methanesulfonic acid with no by-products (see the Perspective by Schüth). The reaction appears to proceed via a cationic chain mechanism initiated by a low concentration of added sulfonyl peroxide and propagated by CH 3 + . Science , this issue p. 1326 ; see also p. 1282