Ni/Al2O3 catalyst pellets were prepared by impregnating wet spherical Al2O3, pellets in the Ni(NH3)(6)(2+) solutions with different Ni concentrations on the basis of the suggestions from the IACES program, an expert system for the selection of impregnation conditions for preparing supported catalysts. After impregnation, Ni/Al2O3 pellets were dried and calcinated, and the Ni distributions along pellet radius were then detected with the electron microprobe. The experimentally observed distributions of Ni were compared with the modeling results obtained by solving the diffusion-deposition model of the impregnation system with consideration of the effect of the drying process. The results show that the simulation can fit the experimental data well if the redistribution of Ni during the drying process is considered.