Which process includes the burning of substances with oxygen resulting in heat production?

The process that includes the burning of substances with oxygen, resulting in heat production, is combustion. During combustion, a fuel reacts with oxygen to produce heat, light, and various products, typically gases like carbon dioxide and water vapor. This exothermic reaction is fundamental in many applications, such as energy generation, cooking, and even in the context of reducing waste in cremation processes within mortuary practices.

Other terms may seem similar, but they involve different processes. For example, oxidation refers to a broader chemical reaction where a substance loses electrons, which may not necessarily involve combustion or produce heat on its own. Pyrolysis, on the other hand, involves the thermal decomposition of organic material at elevated temperatures in an inert atmosphere, which does not require oxygen and does not typically produce flames. Incineration is closely related to combustion and refers specifically to the process of burning waste materials to reduce their volume, but it is not the general term for the specific energy-producing reaction of burning a fuel in the presence of oxygen. Thus, combustion is the most accurate and encompassing answer to the question.