the following tests were conducted mainly in a micropilot plant suitable to test the combustion of gaseous hydrocarbons at the concentration of several hundred parts per million normal hexane was chosen initially among the most significant reagents to verify the oxidation capabilities of the catalyst for two main reasons 1 it is a long chain linear alkane which is particularly resistant to oxidation 2 it is a solvent which is widely used in various kinds of industry including for example chemical industry and printing industry the first results were obtained with a powdered catalyst and the main evaluation parameters considered were the light off activity of the catalyst i e the temperature of the gas stream at which the catalyst burns 50 of the hydrocarbons that are present and the combustion temperature for 95 conversion all tests were conducted at the space velocity of 20000 h u2212 1 twice that actually used in industrial plants pilot scale tests using the catalyst prepared in adequately ground and screened tablets were conducted under conditions more similar to industrial testing with the following results a duration test total time exceeding 1600 hours was conducted in conditions closely resembling the conditions of an industrial plant again by using the catalyst prepared in tablets subsequently ground and screened and by working on a pilot scale the total flow rate was set at 200 cm 3 minute in order to obtain a concentration of 320 ppm of normal hexane in air at the space velocity of 20000 h u2212 1 the catalyst was initially tested for 850 continuous hours at the temperature of 380 u00b0 c with a gas space velocity of 20000 h u2212 1 and with a concentration of 300 ppm.