Acid-base buffering characteristics of non-calcareous soils: Correlation with physicochemical properties and surface complexation constants

•Soil acid-base buffering reactions can be evaluated as a protonation-deprotonation process.•The surface complexation model can be used to describe soil acid-base buffering reactions.•The pHpzc obtained from the surface complexation model (SCM) can be used to evaluate acid-base buffering reactions.•The model-derived surface site concentration (Hs) can be used as an effective indicator of lime requirement.