Patent ID: 8809588

Claim:
A process for preparing an aromatic amine, comprising: hydrogenating, with a copper catalyst, a corresponding aromatic nitro compound, wherein: the copper catalyst comprises a support comprising SiO 2 obtained by wet grinding and subsequent spray drying, the copper catalyst additionally comprises potassium and zinc, the copper catalyst has a surface area of from 150 to 380 m 2 /g, the SiO 2 has a surface area of from 400 to 620 m 2 /g, the hydrogenating is performed at a pressure of 2 to 20 bar and a temperature of 200 to 300° C., the catalyst comprises copper in an amount of 15 to 40% by weight, and the sum of the potassium and zinc and any additional metals present in the copper catalyst is 1 to 10% by weight.