Silicon dioxide nanoparticle has high porosity, large specific surface area and many surface active centers, thus nano silica has potential application value in catalyst and catalyst support.

Silica nano containing composite oxides are prepared by using SiO2 nanopowder as the basic raw material. When used as a catalyst carrier, silicon oxide nano will show unique reaction performance for many structure-sensitive reactions. It shows high catalytic activity of the reaction, good selectivity, and the catalytic activity can be maintained for a long time during the reaction.

The researchers used ZrO2/SiO2 nano materials as a catalyst support to catalyze the dehydration of isopropanol. The study results showed that the reaction has few by-products, and high catalytic efficiency. The selectivity can reach to 100% when under the best conditions.