Have a product to match but not its makeup? We help get it identified, then source a comparable material you can buy in bulk — the sourcing follow-through analytical labs stop short of.
Deformulation — also called chemical reverse engineering — is the analytical process of breaking a product down so its constituents can be identified and quantified. Analytical labs do that work well. Where they stop is the next step: turning the report into material you can actually buy. RawSource is the sourcing follow-through. We help get a product identified through qualified analytical partners, then source the constituent raw materials or a comparable finished chemistry in bulk. We run no laboratory of our own and make no claim on your formulation — the point is to get you from "I need to match this" to a vetted, documented, bulk-supplied material.
Deformulation identifies and quantifies what a product is made of, using techniques such as GC-MS, FTIR, and NMR at an analytical laboratory. Analyzing a product you have lawfully obtained, to identify its chemistry for re-sourcing, is a routine industrial practice; what is not lawful is copying a patent or misusing a trade secret. We work on identity and sourcing, under NDA, and steer clear of anyone's protected IP.
Frequently. A discontinued grade you relied on, or a competitor material you need to benchmark, can usually be identified to its core chemistry and then matched to a currently-produced equivalent. We name where the match is exact and where it is close, so you validate against your own application rather than a promise.
A lab tells you what a thing is. We turn that into supply. The two are complementary: the analytical report defines the target; we find who makes the constituents or the comparable chemistry, vet the source, and supply it in bulk. If you only need the analysis, a lab is the right call — and we will say so.
Identification is performed by qualified analytical laboratories; RawSource sources the result.
| What you have | How it gets identified | What we source |
|---|---|---|
| A discontinued grade you relied on | Spec sheet / retained sample analyzed at a lab | A currently-produced comparable grade in bulk |
| A competitor product to benchmark | Deformulation (GC-MS / FTIR / NMR) at a partner lab | The constituent raw materials or a comparable chemistry |
| An unknown sample with lost documentation | Identity and assay confirmed analytically | A qualified equivalent, documented (TDS / SDS / CoA) |
Chemical reverse engineering, or deformulation, is analytically breaking a product down so its ingredients can be identified and quantified — the basis for matching or re-sourcing it. The lab work is done by qualified analytical partners.
In chemistry, yes — the terms are used interchangeably. "Deformulation" is the industry term for identifying and quantifying the constituents of a formulated product.
Analyzing a product you have lawfully obtained to identify its chemistry for re-sourcing is a routine industrial practice. Copying a patented invention or misusing a trade secret is not. We work under NDA on identity and sourcing and avoid protected IP.
No — RawSource owns no laboratory. Analysis is performed by qualified analytical laboratories; our role is to source the identified chemistry in bulk once the report is in hand.
RawSource is a raw-material sourcing house. Guidance here is advisory; candidate materials, grades, and regulatory notes are for reference, and suitability, performance, and regulatory compliance in your finished application remain the buyer's responsibility. Always consult the current Safety Data Sheet (SDS) before handling.
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