What does the law of conservation of energy state?

The law of conservation of energy is a fundamental principle in physics and chemistry that states energy cannot be created or destroyed. Instead, it can only be transformed from one form to another. This means that the total energy in a closed system remains constant, regardless of the changes that may occur within the system.

For example, when you burn wood, the chemical energy stored in the wood converts into heat energy and light. The total amount of energy remains the same, simply changing from one form to another. This principle is crucial underlining many physical processes and laws, such as in thermodynamics, where energy transfers and transformations occur.

The other options do not accurately reflect this principle. The first option incorrectly claims that energy can be created, which contradicts the conservation principle. The third option suggests that energy can be lost during a process, which implies that the total energy can decrease, directly opposing the law of conservation of energy. The fourth option states that energy transformation always leads to heat loss; while energy can be lost as heat in many transformations, it is not a universal rule that applies to all energy transformations, thus not capturing the essence of the conservation law.