Biology  by Bradford
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Free · IB Chemistry · Reactivity 2

Amount, rate, equilibrium escape room

The Ammonia Works Lockdown

A pressure alarm has tripped at the Northfield ammonia works, and the safety system has sealed your team inside the control block. The plant computer will not release the doors until the night shift proves it understands how much product a reaction makes, how fast it gets there and how far it goes. Five locks stand between you and the loading yard. Each lock asks four questions, and your answers decode into its combination. Outside, the hydrogen compressors are still running and the converter is heating up. Check every calculation, work fast and get out before the morning tankers roll up to the gate.

Play it onlineTeacher pack (PDF)
  • 5 locksfour multiple-choice questions at each, 20 in all
  • About 45 minutesfor a team of three or four
  • Online or on papera link to play, or the pack to print
  • ForIB Chemistry SL and HL classes, every value a question needs given (calculations on data-booklet constants)
  • Play linkbiologybybradford.com/escape/c-r2

The five locks

Each lock’s four answers are decoded with its puzzle into a four-digit combination, so one wrong answer keeps it shut. The questions climb from recall to evaluating evidence.
  1. Lock 1 · Recall

    Gatehouse Turnstile

    Symbol grid Easy

    Find the row for the question and the column for your answer. Swap the symbol for its number using the key.

  2. Lock 2 · Understand

    Weighbridge Office

    Pathway Easy

    Start at your letter and go straight down. Every time you meet a rung, cross it. Your digit is where you finish.

  3. Lock 3 · Apply

    Catalyst Stores Cage

    Patterns Medium

    The rule might multiply, or alternate between two steps, or the gaps might grow. Find the missing number; your digit is its last digit (47 gives 7).

  4. Lock 4 · Analyse data

    Kinetics Lab Door

    Number pyramid Medium

    Each brick is the sum of the two bricks directly below it. Fewer bricks are filled in, so plan your route.

  5. Lock 5 · Evaluate

    Converter Control Room

    Bar chart Hard

    Each letter has a pink bar and a green bar. Your digit is pink minus green.

Lock 1, as a team sees it

The first four questions and their decoder. The answers, and the reason for each, are in the teacher pack.

  1. Which statement defines the activation energy, Ea, of a reaction?

    1. A The mean kinetic energy of the reactant particles at the reaction temperature
    2. B The minimum energy colliding particles need for a collision to lead to reaction
    3. C The energy given out as the bonds in the products form from the transition state
    4. D The difference in enthalpy between the reactants and the products of the reaction

  2. Which statement describes a chemical system at dynamic equilibrium in a closed container?

    1. A The concentrations of the reactants and products have become equal to each other
    2. B Both the forward and the backward reactions have stopped, so nothing changes
    3. C The forward reaction is faster than the backward one, but both keep going
    4. D The forward and backward rates are equal, so the concentrations stay constant

  3. At 298 K, the equilibrium constant for a reaction is K = 4 × 10⁻¹⁵. Which describes the equilibrium mixture?

    1. A Mostly reactants; the reaction has hardly proceeded towards the products
    2. B Mostly products; the reaction has gone very nearly to completion
    3. C Roughly equal amounts of reactants and products are present at equilibrium
    4. D Mostly products, because a very small K means a very small activation energy

  4. Ammonia gas burns in oxygen to form nitrogen monoxide gas and steam. Which equation is balanced, with correct state symbols?

    1. A 2NH₃(g) + 2O₂(g) → 2NO(g) + 3H₂O(g)
    2. B 4NH₃(aq) + 5O₂(g) → 4NO(g) + 6H₂O(l)
    3. C 4NH₃(g) + 5O₂(g) → 4NO(g) + 6H₂O(g)
    4. D 4NH₃(g) + 3O₂(g) → 4NO(g) + 6H₂O(g)

Symbol grid

Easy

Find the row for the question and the column for your answer. Swap the symbol for its number using the key.

ABCD
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
= 1 = 7 = 5 = 4

Running it

  1. Online: send teams the play link. They answer a lock’s four questions, decode the letters and enter the combination; after lock 5 they get a completion code to show you. Nobody needs an account.
  2. On paper: sign in (free) and print the teacher pack: question cards, the five decoders, a guide and the answer key with a reason for every answer.
  3. Your version: Edit a copy from the library to change any question, then play and print it by its own code, or build a room from the topics your class has covered.

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