Explain a new potential heart medicine, code-named X-281, and is being tested by a pharmaceutical company, Pharma-pill. As a research technician at Pharma-pill you are told that X-281 is a monoprotic weak acid, however because of security concerns, the actual chemical formula must remain top secret. The company is interested in the drug's Ka value for the reason that only the dissociated form of the chemical is active in preventing cholesterol buildup in arteries.
To determine the pKa of X-281 you prepare a 0.095M test solution of X-281. The pH of the solution is determined to be 2.40. Explain what is the pKa of X-281?