Dust Almanac

Purpleheart

Peltogyne spp. · Fabaceae · hardwood

Also known as: purple heart, amaranth, violetwood, amarante, palo morado, pau roxo, guarabu, purperhart, koroboreli, Peltogyne

Region: Tropical America, from Mexico through Central America to southern Brazil, centred on the Brazilian Amazon

Planed board of purpleheart with vivid violet-purple heartwood and a narrow edge of off-white sapwood.

Purpleheart is a heavy, very hard tropical American hardwood from several Peltogyne species, such as P. paniculata, P. venosa, P. purpurea and P. mexicana. Its heartwood is brownish when first cut, turns a vivid purple within hours, and slowly darkens to brown over the years. Woodworkers use it for turning, inlay and marquetry, furniture, flooring, tool handles and colourful accents; it dulls cutters and can turn gummy when tools run hot.

Health hazards

  • Skin allergy

    Evidence: Reported

    A UK dermatology report described an allergic skin rash from purpleheart in a man who also reacted to Andaman padauk. Indexing suggests patch testing was done, but we could not read the paper to confirm the results, so treat this as a reported effect.1

    Effects
    allergic contact dermatitis
    Exposure route
    skin

  • Cancer

    Evidence: Applies to all wood dust

    All wood dust is classified as carcinogenic to humans, mainly linked to cancers of the nose and sinuses after long-term exposure. This applies to this wood like any other.2

    Effects
    nasal and sinus cancer
    Exposure route
    inhalation
    From
    dust

Not finding a hazard listed here does not mean this wood is safe. All wood dust is hazardous; see how to protect yourself.

Exposure limits

Workplace exposure limits (8-hour average, mg/m³)
BodyLimitNotes
ACGIH TLV1 mg/m³ (inhalable)Applies to wood dust generally; this species has no separate ACGIH value. source
EU binding limit (hardwood)2 mg/m³Applies to all hardwood dust
UK WEL (hardwood)3 mg/m³Applies to all hardwood dust
NIOSH REL1 mg/m³Recommended limit for all wood dust

Compare limits across agencies.

Cancer classifications

Purpleheart is sold under the genus name and the trade does not usually say which Peltogyne species a board came from. The only purpleheart health report found (Mehta-2007) does not give a botanical name. Its patient also reacted to Andaman padauk (Pterocarpus dalbergioides), a different genus; African padauk has its own page.

Sources

  1. Mehta AJ, Statham BN. Allergic contact dermatitis to purpleheart and padauk wood (Pterocarpus dalbergiodes). Contact Dermatitis. 2007;56(4):245. Link
  2. IARC Working Group on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans. Wood Dust and Formaldehyde. IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans, Vol. 62. Lyon: International Agency for Research on Cancer; 1995. Link
  3. US Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Occupational Chemical Database: Wood Dust. Last updated 06/23/2023. Link

Last reviewed .