1,4-Cyclohexadiene is an effective hydrogen donor for catalytic hydrogenation reactions. It can rapidly replace benzyl groups of N-benzyloxycarbamates, benzyl esters, benzyl ethers and benzyl amines with hydrogen. It forms benzene at elevated temperatures in the presence of a ruthenium(II)-triphenylphosphine catalyst.

1,4-Cyclohexadiene is an effective hydrogen donor for catalytic hydrogenation reaction. The interaction between graphene segments and 1,4-cyclohexadiene was stuided using density-functional tight-binding (DFTB) method.