It is found that electron irradiation, in an electron microscope, of oxidized silicon small particles (nanometers to microns in size) supported on amorphous carbon films, produce extensive surface damage of the oxide layer. During irradiation, the sputtering of the entire thickness (many nanometers) of the silica layer was observed except for a thin (∽ 1 nm) uniform layer which remained stable to further irradiation. The sputtered silica came off and deposited on the nearby carbon film, and was identified using electron energy loss spectroscopy. The carbon film surrounding the particles was seen to damage drastically during irradiation. The damage of the oxide layer seems to be catalyzed by the carbon film at the SiO2/C interface since the rate of removal of the oxide layer decreases as the supporting carbon film disintegrates and is much slower for particles that are not supported.