Question

sam is building a campfire while camping with his family. sams younger brother asks how energy is generated from the burning log to make fire and heat. sam studied thermodynamics in science class the month before and is able to answer his brothers question. which answer does he give? select one: a. the increasing entropy in the system creates usable energy. b. chemical energy in the log is converted to heat and light energy. c. energy is continually generated by the fires high temperature. d. the matter in the log is destroyed to generate excess energy.

Explanation:

• Option a: Entropy increases in combustion, but it does not create usable energy; entropy is a measure of disorder, not an energy source.
• Option b: Wood (the log) stores chemical energy from photosynthesis. When it burns, this chemical energy is converted into thermal (heat) energy and light energy, which matches the observation of fire and heat.
• Option c: Energy cannot be generated (created) according to the law of conservation of energy; the fire only converts existing energy, not creates it.
• Option d: Matter is not destroyed in combustion; the log's matter is converted into ash, smoke, and gases, following the law of conservation of mass, and energy is not generated from destroyed matter.

Answer:

b. Chemical energy in the log is converted to heat and light energy.