A student is told that both energy and mass must be conserved in every chemical reaction. She measures the mass of Hydrochloric acid and a zinc strip separately. She then places the zinc strip into the acid and bubbles form as the zinc looks like it disappears. The combined mass afterward is less than the original. Which of these can explain this result?

I think the mass the mass was less than the original because a gas was released into the atmosphere. The mass in a chemical reaction is constant in a closed system according to conservation of mass law. However, if a chemical reaction is completed in an open system, mas changes may occur. In our case i think the change in mass was due to the release of hydrogen gas from the reaction to the atmosphere.