D. Ajay
Glues are nothing but an adhesive and these are used in table tennis event for sticking the rubber(s) or covering material (s) with the wooden blade of the racquet. These are also used for sticking two number of rubber or covering material in case of sandwich rubber. But the glues which are in use of table tennis event not like normal adhesive of the common market. These are having special type of characteristics depending on the presence of different type of organic and in-organic substances. Generally the following substances are present in the glues:
Toxic substances
Aromatic substances
Chlorinated substances
Heptane substances
Volatile type
Cyclo-hexan substances etc.
The characteristic of the racquet varies depending on their percentage of presence in the used glue. Different types of glue are available in world table tennis market. Players of the world class championship are using various type of glue since 1970. After touching or sticking the ball by the rubber of the racquet the speed and spin of the ball changes depending on the quality of glues. Glues are very much useful for imparting speed or spin or anti-spin or fast attacking or absorbing spin etc. So players are using glues according to their own choice for their performance. Earlier players were using glue for few months. But nowadays the players are using glue for a week and sometimes it is for a tournament or for a match to achieve the maximum outcome of the glue.
Generally adhesives which are available in the normal market are non-toxic type and not so much harmful for human being especially for skin. No chance of active dermatitis disease or breathing problem found in case of contact of general adhesive available in the market with the body. But the glues which are used in table tennis event are having the chances of creating the above diseases. So these glues which are in use of table tennis event are not safe in use for human beings. The doctors related to the development of table tennis event feel to restrict the uses of glues as the event plays million of table tennis lovers.
The process on which glues are used in table tennis racquet is known as gluing. Earlier gluing was allowed in a marked area inside the stadium. After that, a separate room of the stadium was allotting by the organizing committee for gluing of the racquet. But this was not sufficient as the glues are very much un-hygienic for the health.
So the INTER NATIONAL TABLE TENNIS FEDERATION ( ITTF ) was bound to take some preventive measure restricting the branded glue with the limitation of percentage of organic and in-organic compound used in the glue. But these limitations was not sufficient for the players as there were no testing equipment available with the ITTF for testing the presence of offending compound in the used glue. So the players were violating the limitations of glue imposed by ITTF.
Ultimately the checking of the presence of the offending compound in glue of a racquet has been started in the last decade. Glue testing is nowadays a compulsory part of all the world level table tennis championship.
A German company WASSING has introduced a machine named ENEZ for testing the glue as ALLOWED or NOT ALLOWED. It is a electronic nose to sniff out the offending compound. This sniffing out are processing in a box or a container. The racquet is allowed to keep inside the container for 60 second after keeping open the container for 60 second and the electronic nose differentiate the offending compound with respect to each other and gives the result. For more accurate testing the RAE device may be used. RAE is also testing the ENEZ testing device.
Sometimes common methods are also being used by the organizing committee for testing the glue. The samples are being taken from the racquet through a syringe and dipping it into the testing solvent to check the change of the colour of the solvent. Incase case of the toxic glue the testing solvent will be changed to the brown type colour.
The outcome of the test is now safe for the users and it is enhancing the attraction of the event. It is because the number of rallies of a point i.e. continuation of play is more than earlier now.
Ref. Article:www.about.com.
Custom Search