In this work, a method to calculate the baseline when weight loss processes take place is presented. Such method combines the information obtained by TGA with the simultaneous heat flow signal obtained in a Simultaneous Thermal Analyzer. Once the water evaporation step is identified, thermal parameters such as specific heat and enthalpy of vaporization can be combined with the instantaneous weight loss to subtract the heat flow corresponding to this component from the DSC baseline. In this paper the model was applied to water evaporation in forest litter samples. (c) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.