The aerosol-assisted sol-gel process has been proposed as a versatile and highly potent method for preparing nanostructured materials with high specific surface area, well-defined pore size and tuneable texture and composition. This process integrates sol-gel chemistry, aerosol spray drying and evaporation-induced self-assembly in one step and in a continuous mode of rapid nanomaterials production . It offers a possibility to incorporate a variety of metals (oxides), such as Ti , Ga , Zn , Ta , W , Co and alloyed PdNi , into silica supports. These materials can also accommodate high loading of the promoter while maintaining homogeneous dispersion.