oxidenanocompositePorositya b s t r a c tA series of 10, 20 and 30% (w/w) La2O3-Fe2O3/silica composites were synthesized by mixing of La-Fecitrate complex gels with spherical silica sols. This was followed by calcination of the formed xerogelat 550◦C and 750◦C for 3 h. The materials were characterized by XRD, simultaneous thermal analyses(TGA-DTA), FTIR, N2gas adsorption/desorption isotherms at −196◦C, and TEM techniques. Results indi-cated complete decomposition of the precursor complex upon calcination and development of porouscomposites with high surface area. However, processing of the La-Fe citrate complex gel or the silicaprecursors without mixing led to formation of LaFeO3perovskite oxide type and silica with very lowsurface area amounting to 4 and 11 m2/g, respectively. Thus the process led to the formation of nano-sized amorphous-like LaFeO3phase (as a shell) on the surface of the spherical silica particles (core). Theenhancement of surface area and porosity of the composites was correlated to the dispersion of La-Feprecursor on the surface of silica sol. The method can be generalized for other mixed oxides.© 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved