Low-temperature thermal energy can be upgraded to higher temperatures by chemical heat pumps. Among the working pairs for chemical heat pumps, 2-propanol/acetone/hydrogen using a combination of dehydrogenation (of 2-propanol)/hydrogenation (of acetone) reaction seems to be promising. This study was aimed at experimentally determining the performance of dehydrogenation of 2-propanol using a 10 wt% Ru-Pt/activated C catalyst in a temperature range 60-80 degrees C with a view to study the influence of reaction temperature, catalyst concentration, nitrogen flow, and acetone concentration in liquid reactant on 2-propanol dehydrogenation in terms of reaction rate and hydrogen produced. The maximum initial reaction rate of 54 mmol h(-1) g(-1) was obtained at a reaction temperature of 75-80 degrees C and a catalyst concentration of 1.3 g l(-1). Observations indicate that at constant reaction temperature and catalyst concentration, varying amounts of catalyst and 2-propanol resulted in different reaction rates. The reaction rate decreases with increasing acetone in liquid reactant. The nitrogen flow strongly influences the reaction rate, as it is used as a stirring medium. The maximum heat utilization of 4.5 per cent was obtained when the oil bath temperature was 100 degrees C at a catalyst concentration of 1.3 g l(-1). Copyright (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.