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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 April 2008
Although chemical separation is generally accepted as the main physical process responsible for the anomalous surface abundances of AmFm stars, its exact behavior within the interior of these stars is still uncertain. We will explore two hydrodynamical processes which could compete with atomic diffusion: mass loss and turbulence. We will also discuss the extent to which separation occurs immediately below the surface convection zone as well as the extent to which separation occurs below 200,000 K. To do so, self-consistent stellar models with mass loss and turbulence where calculated using the Montreal stellar evolution code and compared to observations of A and F stars. It is shown that to the precision of observations available for F stars, a mass loss rate of 2×10−14M⊙ · yr−1, is compatible with observations and that no turbulence is then required.