1) Ionic compounds dissolve in water by dissociating into their constituent ions. For example, NaCl dissociates into Na+ and Cl- ions in water. 2) Aluminum sulfate, Al2(SO4)3, dissociates into 2 Al3+ and 3 SO42- ions when dissolved in water, producing a total of 5 moles of ions from 1 mole of the compound. 3) Precipitation reactions occur when opposite ions combine to form an insoluble ionic compound. For example, combining solutions of (NH4)2S and Cd(NO3)2 will produce the insoluble precipitate CdS.