The rotating flow field in a cylindrical vessel of a centrifugal-settling vat - the so-called whirlpool - finds the wide application in brewery technology for the separation of solid particles, i.e. hot break. The phenomenon of the conically shaped concentration of sediment reaching the vessel bottom is utilized in this installation. The process of sediment separation in standard whirlpools is carried out with the discharge head H equal to the diameter of a vessel, so the H:D ratio is usually 1. An analysis of the spin-down velocity distribution carried out on the basis of computer simulation results was aimed to establish the effects on liquid clarification and formation of sediment cone. (c) 2007 Published by Elsevier Ltd.