A model has been derived to predict thermodynamic properties of ternary metallic systems from those of its three binaries. In the model, the excess Gibbs free energies and the interaction parameter omega(123) for three components of a ternary are expressed as a simple sum of those of the three sub-binaries, and the mole fractions of the components of the ternary are identical with the sub-binaries. This model is greatly simplified compared with the current symmetrical and asymmetrical models. It is able to overcome some shortcomings of the current models, such as the arrangement of the components in the Gibbs triangle, the conversion of mole fractions between ternary and corresponding binaries, and some necessary processes for optimizing the various parameters of these models. Two ternary systems, Mg-Cu-Ni and Cd-Bi-Pb are recalculated to demonstrate the validity and precision of the present model. The calculated results on the Mg-Cu-Ni system are better than those in the literature. New parameters in the Margules equations expressing the excess Gibbs free energies of three binary systems of the Cd-Bi-Pb ternary system are also given. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.