A new replication-in-situ carbonization route has been developed to synthesize mesoporous tungsten carbide using the block copolymer (poly(ethylene glycol)-block-poly (propyleneglycol)-block-poly(ethylene glycol)) in-situ present in the pore channels of mesoporous silica template as carbon source. The results indicate that the synthesized mesoporous WC has high surface area (143 m(2) g(-1)) and well-crystallized framework, and possesses high and stable catalytic activity for ethylene hydrogenation reaction. The influence of H(2)/C(2)H(4) mole ratio and space velocity on the mesoporous WC catalyst performance in the ethylene hydrogenation reaction was studied. This mesoporous WC material with high surface area and porous structure showed much better ethylene hydrogenation activity than the reference WC bought from the company, and the complete ethylene hydrogenation was reached at 250 degrees C on the prepared mesoporous WC material. Crown Copyright (C) 2011, Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.