eng Science and Education Publishing American Journal of Nanomaterials 2372-3122 2017-08-03 5 2 43 50 10.12691/ajn-5-2-1 AJN2017521 article Keerthi Senevirathne keerthi.senevirathne@famu.edu 1 Sanuja Pitigala 1 Shyamalee Ramaraj 1 Abdou Lachgar 2 3 Richard T. Williams 3 4 Department of Chemistry, Florida A&M University, Tallahassee, FL, USA Center for Energy, Environment, and Sustainability, Wake Forest University, Winston Salem, NC, USA Solution based synthesis methods; refluxing, base hydrolysis, and hydrothermal synthesis were successfully applied to synthesize shape anisotropic Zn doped Ga2O3, followed by subsequent nitridation in ammonia to make corresponding nitride photocatalysts. The catalysts were characterized using different physical characterization methods to evaluate their structure, shape and composition. Photocatalytic methylene blue (MB) degradation and selective hydrogenation of aromatic nitro organic compound 4-nitroaniline (4-NA) were selected to probe reactions under uv-visible and visible light irradiation. Zn containing nitride catalysts are clearly active on MB degradation and 4-NA conversion under visible light irradiation. http://pubs.sciepub.com/ajn/5/2/1/ajn-5-2-1.pdf photocatalysis Zinc-doped GaN solution-phase synthesis shape anisotropy organic molecule decomposition and conversion