For the case of isobutylbenzoate, a study has been made of the possibility of producing aldehydes from esters in the presence of heterogeneous catalysts of different composition. It has been shown that the best results (88% ester conversion with an overall yield of the corresponding alcohol and aldehyde of 75-79%) are achieved in the presence of a MnO2/Al2O3 catalyst at a temperature of 390 degrees C and a specific feed rate of the initial ester of 1.5 mole/hr.1(cat).