Electrocatalytic reaction was examined as an alternative method for the catalytic hydrogenation of cyclohexanone over I'd catalysts. The behavior of Pd/alumina catalyst and finely divided Pd catalyst in the electrocatalytic and catalytic hydrogenation of cyclohexanone in aqueous solution were investigated as a comparative study. The role of the pH of the solution was studied both in electrocatalytic and catalytic hydrogenation over Pd/alumina catalyst using acetic acid as a supporting electrolyte. High current yields were obtained for the electrocatalytic process, whereas, as expected from the literature, the catalytic hydrogenation was inefficient. (c) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.