The hydrogenation of 3-hydroxypropanal (HPA) to 1,3-propanediol (PD) over Ni/SiO2/Al2O3 catalyst powder was carried out at 318-353 K and 2.60-5.15 MPa in a batchwise-operated stirred autoclave. A kinetic model which can well describe the reactions of this process was developed. The model parameters were estimated by the maximum likelihood function of the concentration of HPA and PD according to concentration-time profiles measured at different temperatures and pressures. To obtain high selectivity of PD the reaction temperature should be lower than 333 K.