Method of and appliance for material separation

The invention relates to a method of material separation, in which a material, which comprises at least a first material component and a second material component, is introduced, together with a washing fluid, into a container with at least one sedimentation chamber and is subjected to a gravitational field, under influence of the gravitational field in the sedimentation chamber, the first material component is enriched in a sedimentation zone, which is bounded by a base, and the material with the enriched first material component is evacuated from the sedimentation zone via an opening in the base, the material with the enriched first material component being evacuated as a sediment film through the opening in the base, washing fluid flowing transversely onto the sediment film and the washing fluid flowing through the sediment film and, in the process, an at least partial displacement of the remaining second material component taking place from the sediment film. The invention further relates to an appliance, in particular for carrying out the method.