Data Integration Analysis Indicates That Soil Texture and pH Greatly Influence the Acid Buffering Capacity of Global Surface Soils

Abstract

Soil acidification is a global environmental issue that decreases soil functions, and it has been significantly accelerated by anthropogenic activities in recent decades. Soils can resist acidification upon receiving acid inputs due to the resistance or/and resilience capacity of soils, which is termed the acid buffering capacity of soils, and it is often indicated by the soil pH buffering capacity (pHBC). An increasing number of studies have been conducted to quantify soil pHBC at various sites, but to date, integration of global data is lacking; therefore, the variations in large-scale soil pHBC and the factors that influence these variations are still unclear. In this study, we collected previously published data on soil pHBC to analyze its variations on a large scale, as well as investigate the underlying factors influencing these variations. The results showed that soil pHBC varied substantially from site to site, with a mean of 51.07 ± 50.11 mmol kg−1 pH−1. Soil texture and pH, separately or collectively, explained a considerable proportion of the total variation of global soil pHBC. It is well-established that a series of processes contribute to the soil acid buffering capacity in different pH ranges, and the global data analyses showed that pH 5.5 could be a key threshold value; different buffering systems may be active at pH > 5.5 and pH < 5.5. Moreover, tropical soils were more acid-sensitive than temperate and subtropical soils, and forest soils had significantly lower soil pHBCs than grassland and cropland soils. This could be attributed in part to the different soil properties, such as soil texture or pH, among the different climatic zones and ecosystems.