A high-performance PdRu bimetallic catalyst supported on mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSN), PdRu/MSN, was prepared by a facile impregnation-hydrogen reduction method. It was found that PdRu/MSN showed 5 times higher activity than that of Pd/MSN towards the liquid-phase hydrogenation of phenol. The catalysts were characterized comprehensively by multiple techniques, X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and hydrogen temperature program reduction (TPR). It was revealed that adding Ru could effectively improve the Pd dispersion and promote the electronic interaction between the Pd and Ru, both of which contribute to enhancing the catalytic activity. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.