After some wood has completely burned in a fire, some of the matter that made up the wood has been destroyed.

is the statement correct or incorrect? explain.

a) it is correct. the ashes weigh less than the original wood and this proves that some of the mass was destroyed.
eliminate
b) it is incorrect. ashes look different than wood but the mass of the ashes is the same as the mass of the original wood.
c) it is incorrect. look at the ashes under the microscope. these particles will look exactly like the particles in the wood.
d) it is incorrect. capture and collect all of the gases given off by the fire and combine these masses with the mass of the left over ashes. this should equal the mass of the original wood.