The analysis of the oxygen-liquid metal interaction is a topic of particular technological interest. A deep knowledge of the kinetics and transport mechanisms involved in the oxidation phenomena is necessary: the effect of oxidation reactions taking place in the gas phase and the evaporation of oxides must be considered. This paper aims to review our works in order to provide a systematic analysis of the oxidation of pure metals and determine the most likely to keeping oxygen-free the surface in a binary alloy. In addition, the upgrading of this theoretical approach, here briefly described, is addressed to give a contribution to a better understanding of the evolution of oxidation phenomena close to the solid-liquid-gas interfaces. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.