Abstract: The carrier for catalysts used in chemical processes to convert natural gas is a fused mixture of aluminium oxide taken in the quantity of not less than 50 per cent by weight with at least one refractory oxide selected from the group, consisting of titanium oxides, nickel oxides, magnesium oxide, calcium oxide, iron oxides, silicon dioxide, boron oxide, and chromium oxides. An example of such a mixture is metallurgical slag which is formed in the production of ferro titanium ferrochromoboron, ferroboral, nickelboron, ferroboron prepared by the alluminothermy. As an active component is applied to the carrier, the catalyst is prepared. The catalyst can also be a mechanical mixture of the active component with the carrier. The active component can be any metal, for example nickel, chromium, aluminium, silver, platinum, copper and other metals which are selected depending on the requirements of a particular process. The content of the active component is from 0.

Abstract: According to the invention, the catalyst contains oxides of nickel (25 per cent by weight), of aluminium (50 per cent by weight), of magnesium (14 per cent by weight), of calcium (10 per cent by weight) and of barium (1 per cent by weight), and the method of preparing it consists in that nickel carbonate, oxide or hydroxide of aluminium, and magnesium oxide pre-calcined at a temperature of 1300.degree..+-.50.degree.C, are mixed with an aqueous solution of nickel nitrate and of barium oxide; the obtained mixture is dried and calcined, and to the obtained mixture of the metal oxides are added a binding agent (calcium aluminate), a lubricating agent (potassium stearate), and a wetting agent (water or an aqueous solution of sulphosalicylic acid or of triethanolamine); the prepared mixture is pressed into tablets and the latter are hardened hydraulically, dried and calcined.The invention can be used in petrochemical synthesis.