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When steel wool burns, it actually goes through a chemical reaction known as combustion, which involves the oxidation of the iron present in the steel. During this process, the steel wool reacts with oxygen from the air, producing iron oxide (rust) and releasing heat and light in the form of fire.

The mass of the steel wool initially decreases because some of it is transformed into gaseous products, particularly those released during burning. However, oxygen from the air is also added to the mix, and this is key to why the overall mass can appear to increase. The mass of iron oxide produced during combustion includes the mass from both the original steel wool and the oxygen it has combined with.

Therefore, the total mass signifies an increase when considering the combined mass of steel wool and the cellular oxygen reacting with it. This illustrates the law of conservation of mass, which states that mass cannot be created or destroyed in a chemical reaction. So while the original steel wool diminishes, the resultant product (iron oxide) plus the oxygen used in the reaction means the final mass reflects an increase when all components are accounted for.