Structured catalysts with mixed Rh-LaMnO3 formulation were developed for the partial oxidation of methane to syngas intended as a preliminary conversion step in advanced combustion systems such as power turbines and utility burners employing a catalytic fuel-rich approach to reduce thermal NOx formation. Honeycomb catalysts were fully characterized by ICP-MS, BET, DRIFT, H-2-TPR and their performances were tested under self-sustained, high temperature catalytic partial oxidation reaction to assess the impact of noble metal loading. Moreover, at fixed catalyst formulation, the impact of substrate morphology and thermal conductivity was addressed by direct comparison of honeycombs with several cell densities (cordierite 200-1200 cpsi) and two solid materials (cordierite vs. SiC). (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.