Making Buffers?

Question

My AP Chem teacher gave us this assignment to do, and i don't know how to do it, so help me please.

The assignment says:
"The best buffers consist of half-neutralized weak acid. When that happens the buffer can resist the greatest amount of added acid or base, and pH=pKa, as shown in the H-H equation.

However, fairly effective buffers can be made where [A-]/[HA] is not exactly 1.00, but farily close (0.20-5.00).

Your task is to select an appropriate weak acid and give directions to make one liter of buffer that will have a pH equal to a given value.

Your buffer can be 0.5-1.0M HA with and appropriate amount of A-."

The pH value given to me was 6.00

Please help me do this.

Answer 1

Please use MES. Its pKa is 6.15. To make a buffer solution with pH value 6.00, you only need to make HA and A- concentration such that log([HA]/[A-]) = 0.15, or [HA] = 1.413*[A-]. Is that simple?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MES_%28buffer%29