ABSTRACT
This chapter is the core of the book, and was the first to be written. It represents the basis for tool steel behavior, focusing on the understanding of the properties and performance based on the microstructure. As detailed here, this reduces the complexity of the different types and distinct properties of tool steels. The basic concepts of ferrous alloys are not explained here (e.g., terminology, different phases, and other concepts of ferrous alloy metallurgy), but they can be found in basic materials science books, such as Reference 1.
