TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - INORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Component: The noble metal comprises iron, ruthenium, osmium, cobalt, rhodium, iridium, nickel, platinum, or palladium (preferably rhodium). The anion comprises potassium hexafluoride or boron tetrafluoride. The catalyst for the sol-gel process is an inorganic acid or a base. Preferred Compound: The inorganic acid comprises hydrofluoric acid or hydrochloric acid. The base is ammonium hydroxide. Preferred Condition: The noble metal nanoparticles in the supported catalyst have a concentration of 0.10-0.15% (m/m) and a mean size of 3-6 nm.    TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - ORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Component: The ionic liquid is a derivative of 1-3-dialkylimidazolium cation associated with a weakly coordinating anion. The co-solvent is alcohol. The molecular precursor is an alkoxide, particularly a metal alkoxide. The metal alkoxide is an alkoxysiloxane. The anion may also comprise trifluoromethane sulfonate or trifluoromethane sulfonyl imide. Preferred Compound: The alcohol is ethanol. The alkoxysiloxane is tetraethoxysiloxane. Preferred Condition: The ionic liquid is 1-20% v/v in relation to the co-solvent. EXAMPLE - Tetraethoxysiloxane (10 ml) was placed in a beaker fitted with a magnetic stirrer and heated at 60 degrees C. Nanoparticles of rhodium (10 mg) were redispersed in BMI.BF4 (undefined) (1 ml) ionic liquid. Ethanol (5 ml) was added to the solution comprising the ionic liquid and nanoparticles, subjected to ultrasound for 2 minutes and added to the beaker containing the tetraethoxysiloxane. An acid solution containing water (2 ml) and hydrofluoric acid (5 ml) was added. The mixture was initially homogenized by gentle magnetic stirring (10 minutes), followed by application of ultrasound (2 minutes) and allowed to stand in a semi-sealed beaker at 60 degrees C for 18 hours. The resulting material (rhodium nanoparticles supported on silica matrix) was washed with acetone several times, dried under vacuum and used in a catalytic process. The extraction with acetone may be used to remove the liquid. Calcination at 450 degrees C for 6 hours can also be used to extract the ionic liquid. The distribution of rhodium particles on the silica matrix was found to be relatively homogeneous by chemical mapping. The average size of the rhodium nanoparticles immobilized on the silica was 4.1 plus minus 0.6 nm.