Heat treatment of tool steels means several phase transformations. Every phase transformation must be described by start amount, end amount, and kinetics (change of phases depending on temperature and time). Start and end amount can be calculated with different thermodynamic software. For example, Thermocalc is well validated for tool steels. The most common method for determining the transformation kinetics of main phases (e.g. ferrite, austenite, martensite, bainite) is to use dilatometric investigations. TTT (time-temperature-transformation) diagrams obtained from dilatometer measurements can be easily implemented in HTS software. An example is shown in the figure.
For more information, click on the link below (subscription required). Then scroll to Figure 14. R Schneider; R. Mesquita; W Schützenhöfer, Distortion in Tool Steels, ASM International, 2014 https://doi.org/10.31399/asm.hb.v04d.a0005980
