Soft Annealing

Soft annealing is used mainly for high-carbon steels to reduce hardness and improve machinability. The steel is heated to slightly above the lower critical temperature and slowly cooled.

This process produces a spheroidized structure.

Temperature Range:

  • 650–750°C

Furnace Types Used:

  • Box furnace
  • Bell furnace
  • Controlled atmosphere furnace

Applications:
Tool steels before machining