The Scientific Insights Blog - RJ Lee Group

PICs/PIDs and RJ Lee Group Advanced Instrumentation Group

Written by Peter Zemek | Jan 27, 2026 3:59:05 PM

Are you certain you know what’s in your process stream and emissions—at the ppt level?

Across semiconductor manufacturing, incineration/thermal treatment, fluoropolymer manufacturing, and chemical processing, even well-controlled systems can generate trace-level “unknown unknowns”—including PIDs (Products of Incomplete Destruction) and PICs (Products of Incomplete Combustion) that contribute to:

  • Formation of Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs)
  • Reduced destruction efficiency/incomplete conversion pathways
  • Corrosion, fouling, and off-spec production impacts
  • Potential generation and/or release of volatile PFAS and PFAS precursor compounds
  • Regulatory and reputational risks due to compounds not captured by conventional monitoring

When you need to validate performance, optimize operations, or diagnose a process upset, waiting weeks for lab data is not an option.

RJ Lee Group = Forensics

We provide forensic chemical intelligence through advanced mobile laboratories available on a subcontract basis, equipped with:

  • PTR-TOF-MS (Proton Transfer Reaction – Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry)
  • AIMS (Aerosol Ionization Mass Spectrometry)
  • OE-FTIR (Advanced Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry)
  • OES (Optical Emissions Spectrometry)
  • CRDS (Cavity Ringdown Spectrometry)
  • XRF/XRD (X-ray Fluorescence and Diffraction)
  • SEM/TEM (Tunneling and Scanning Electron Microscopy)

Our platforms offers:

  • Near real-time chemical fingerprinting
  • Rapid detection and differentiation of process signature
  • High-resolution identification of unknown byproduct chemistries
  • Ultra-trace sensitivity down to the part-per-trillion (ppt) level
  • The ability to identify emerging compounds, intermediates, and precursors driving risk

This is not just monitoring—it’s process forensics: identifying what’s forming, when it’s forming, and what operational conditions are driving it.

Call RJ Lee Group to bring mobile PTR-TOF-MS and AIMS forensics capability to your facility—fast, defensible, and actionable.