In general, for complete combustion hydrocarbon in the form of a fuel and oxygen is required to produce final products of heat + water and carbon dioxide.
Basic Equation for a Complete Combustion
hydrocarbon + oxygen → carbon dioxide + water
In the context of burning of forest wood, typical forestry equipment to intentionally ignites fires usually uses a mixture of gasoline 30% and diesel 70% as their main source of fuel to facilitate combustion.
Example: chemical equation of diesel.
- A typical diesel chemical composition falls into category of a hydrocarbon with 14 Carbon atoms and 30 Hydrogen atoms.
- For a typical complete combustion of diesel with Oxygen, its by products other than heat energy would be Carbon Dioxide and Water Vapour.
2C14 H30 + 43O2 → Heat Energy + 28CO2 + 30H2O
Diesel + Oxygen → Energy + Carbon Dioxide + Water Vapour
Reference from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/science/aqa/crudeoil/hydrocarbonsrev1.shtml
Image Source: https://chembloggreen1.wordpress.com/page/2/