In addition to the separation of liquids of different density laboratory centrifuges for separating solids are used in a liquid. One gives to the mixture in centrifuge tubes, which are significantly thicker and more stable than test tubes.
Earlier laboratory centrifuges have been driven by a crank, now by an electric motor. Centrifugation is often preferred to the filtration, such as when strong acid solutions would attack filter paper or if the disposal of the sludge purity should therefore be carried out without additional filter aid material.
The ultracentrifuge has been developed by Theodor Svedberg, so that the sedimentation velocity of the macromolecules and thus given their approximate molecular mass. He received in 1926 the Nobel Prize. Ultracentrifuge rotate their contents very quickly min - up to 500,000 rpm. The rotor is located at this in a vacuum, in order to avoid the otherwise extremely high air friction.
For the separation of isotopes are used, inter alia, gas centrifuge.
Large-scale centrifuges are used to speed up testing for pilots and astronauts to the take-off, flight maneuvers and reentry into the atmosphere forces, which amount to a multiple of gravity, to simulate [1].
In the experimental soil mechanics, centrifuges are used to simulate the earth pressure.