Recebido em 02/11/2015; aceito em 16/01/2016; publicado na web em 15/04/2016The Wilkinson complex was tested as a catalyst in the partial hydrogenation of 1-heptyne, a medium chain alkyne, at a temperature of T = 303 K and hydrogen pressure PH 2 = 150 kPa. The tests were performed in homogeneous system as well as heterogeneous system, supporting the complex on i) γ-Al 2 O 3 and ii) a commercial carbonaceous material, RX3. Characterization by means of XPS and FTIR revealed that the anchored complex did not lose its chemical identity, being the catalytically active species. The Wilkinson complex on RX3 showed better conversions and selectivities, higher than the Lindlar catalyst, used as a reference. Additionally, it was proposed a method to recover Rh as a metal from the remaining solutions, and from it regenerate the complex to be reused from it.