Annealing
Thermal treatment of tool steels

The term annealing carries with it the idea of achieving a cold stable state (below or equal to room temperature), or tending towards this state if it has been disturbed by previous thermal or thermomechanical treatments. The cold-stable state consists of a mixture of ferrite and carbides whose distribution varies according to the previous thermomechanical history. Moreover, from a mechanical point of view, the stable state includes the absence of residual stresses.

Depending on the structural or mechanical condition of the steel and the purpose to be achieved, several types of annealing can be distinguished:

• complete annealing, generally referred to simply as annealing, the purpose of which...