The deactivation of a heterogeneous Cu/Ni/Cr‐Al2O3 aldehyde hydrogenation catalyst was studied using n‐nonyl aldehyde as model reactant. The reaction network was experimentally determined in batch experiments at 180 °C and 25 bar with either fresh or spent catalyst and also w/o the presence of the catalyst. Accelerated aging was applied to stress the fresh catalyst under model reaction conditions for characterization and comparison to a spent catalyst from an industrial plant. The catalyst structure and morphology were studied by XRD and TEM/EDX. The carbon residues that strongly adsorb on the catalyst surface during hydrogenation were analyzed by BET, TGA, extraction, and chemical disintegration. The amount of strongly adsorbed heavy hydrocarbons was 10 w % for the spent catalyst, causing a decrease in pore volume by 30 %. Regeneration of the catalyst was successfully conducted via oxidation of the carbon residues.