It has been used historically as an alternative to the McIlvaine buffer, which has a smaller pH range of effectiveness (from 2 to 8).
[1] Universal buffers consist of mixtures of acids of diminishing strength (increasing pKa), so that the change in pH is approximately proportional to the amount of alkali added.
This mixture consists of 0.0286 M citric acid, 0.0286 M monopotassium phosphate, 0.0286 M boric acid, 0.0286 M veronal and 0.0286 M hydrochloric acid titrated with 0.2 M sodium hydroxide.
The buffer was invented in 1931 by the English chemist Hubert Thomas Stanley "Kevin" Britton (1892–1960) and the New Zealand chemist Robert Anthony Robinson (1904–1979).
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