http://socratic.org/chemistry. We'll look at what happens when you dissolve ionic and covalent compounds in water. Ionic compounds break apart into the ions that make them up, a process called dissociation, while covalent compounds only break into the molecules, not the individual atoms.ttp://socratic.org/chemistry. We'll look at what happens when you dissolve ionic and covalent compounds in water. Ionic compounds break apart into the ions that make them up, a process called dissociation, while covalent compounds only break into the molecules, not the individual atoms.