Stability and reusability are crucial properties for heterogeneous catalysts in view of their industrial applications. Here, we report a very stable catalyst, ZnPd/ZnO@Al2O3, for the aqueous phase hydrogenolysis of glycerol, which was prepared by a facile strategy via pretreatment of ZnO with Al(NO3)(3) and conventional impregnation and annealing processes. The as-prepared ZnPd/ZnO@Al2O3 showed excellent stability, and it could be recycled 5 times, retaining high activity and selectivity (92%) to 1,2-propanediol. It was confirmed that the surface porous Al2O3 skin layer could suppress the aggregation and growth of ZnPd alloy particles and protect the imbedded ZnO from etching by water. This work provides a facile method for preparing stable catalysts with metal particles imbedded into a surface Al2O3 layer, and the present ZnPdanO@Al2O3 is expected to have a potential application in other aqueous catalysis reactions. (C) 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.