The competitive hydrogenation of acetone and benzene has been studied over Ni/SiO2, Pt/SiO2, Ru/SiO2 and copper containing catalysts: Cu/SiO2 with different copper content, Cu/Al2O3, copper chromite containing catalyst (CuCr2O4 x CuO). The catalysts were characterized by elemental analysis, X-ray diffraction, TEM, TPR of hydrogen and low-temperature adsorption of nitrogen. The catalytic experiments were carried out in a fixed bed reactor under atmospheric and elevated (2.5 MPa) pressure, in the temperature range of 130-250 degrees C. Cu-containing catalysts showed the highest selectivity to acetone hydrogenation in the presence of benzene. The best results in terms of activity and selectivity to isopropanol were obtained over Cu/SiO2 with 11 wt.% of copper at 170 degrees C and 2.5 MPa. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.