The separation of cells and cellular components is accomplished with a centrifuge . A sample of cells is first blended to mechanically break some of the cells releasing their contents to form a cell homogenate The remaining whole cells and cell componerlts are separated based on their sedimentation rate by centrifuging the sample at increasingly high speed . The centrifuge spins at up to several thousand rotations per minute ( rpm ) forcing material to accumulate as a pellet at the bottom of the tube . The liquid portion is removed and centrifuged again to yield four ( 4 ) pellets containing the cells or cell components listed in the diagram