A kinetic model was developed for racemic and enantioselective ethyl pyruvate hydrogenation based on selective and unselective reaction routes in the presence of a solid catalyst (Pt/Al2O3), a catalyst modifier (cinchonidine) and microwave irradiation. The temperature of the catalyst bed was estimated with the aid of a mathematical model for heat transfer in a packed bed as well as with energy balances for solid and liquid phases. The microwave reactor was modelled with mass and energy balances, which were decoupled, since the heat effect of the hydrogenation process was negligible compared to that of the microwave source. The Langmuir-Hinshelwood type of approach was used for the kinetic model, which was incorporated in a non-steady state plug flow reactor model. The proposed models described well the observed hydrogenation kinetics and the temperature behaviour of the microwave reactor. (c) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.