Process for preparing a syngas and syngas cooling device

The invention relates to a process for the preparation of a syngas comprising hydrogen and carbon monoxide comprising the steps of: (a) reacting a preheated methane comprising gas with an oxidising gas to obtain a hot raw syngas comprising carbon monoxide and hydrogen; (b) cooling the hot raw syngas resulting from step (a) to obtain the syngas by indirect heat exchange against water to produce saturated steam; (c) further cooling the raw syngas obtained in step (b) by indirect heat exchange against a methane comprising gas to obtain a cooled raw syngas and the preheated methane comprising gas for use in step (a), wherein: (i) steps (b) and (c) take place in a single cooling device for combined indirect heat exchange against water and against the methane comprising gas; and (ii) the preheated methane comprising gas obtained in step (c) has a temperature between 400 and 650°C. The invention also relates to a cooling device which can be used as the single cooling device in the above process. The cooling device comprises an evaporation section for producing saturated steam, a gas heat exchange section for preheating the methane comprising feed used in step (a) against the raw syngas and a dry steam collection space. This dry steam collection space is separated from the evaporation section where wet saturated steam is formed.