The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) has, as of September 1, 2008, banished a wide variety of solvents used to apply table tennis equipment rubber to rackets. The following is text verbatim from the Chairman of the ITTF Equipment Committee, Odd Gustavsen.

We would like to draw your attention to the decision made in Guangzhou, valid from September 1, 2008 (The Law 2.4.7.):

The covering material should be used as it has been authorised by the ITTF without any physical, chemical or other treatment, changing or modifying playing properties, friction, outlook, colour, structure, surface, etc.

This means an absolute ban for the use of boosters (tuners, enhancers, improvers, etc.). The purpose of a booster is to change something – if not, what would be the intention. You may find such products claiming to be harmless, to be allowed by ITTF, or to be without VC (volatile compounds), etc. There is little reason to believe this is true. Please be very sceptical since these are generally bad for your health, even containing poison in some cases.

According to our tests there is no way that a sponge can be treated separate from the covering; refer the usual way a booster is applied, i.e. on the sponge.

Boosters represent a messy, time consuming, costly, unhealthy, and now illegal way of achieving spin and speed, and you may be detected in a tournament. Other and better ways exist for the same purpose.