[Marley2500]

I'm working on a college art project and I need to find some sort of solid that can easily dissolve away in water.  I'm planning on encasing an object in said solid and then dropping it into water, allowing it to dissolve away, leaving the object behind.  I looked around the internet but was unable to find anything besides salt or sugar, and I am going to be unable to heat the water beforehand.  Basically I just need help.

Thanks a lot!

[agrobert]

Do the solids need to dissolve or just come clean from the object?  What about flour?
Or baking soda?  Try mixing flour or baking soda with cooking oil to make a solid paste that should rinse off. 

[lost and found]

General solubility rules:

All sodium salts are soluble.
All potassium salts are soluble.
All ammonium salts are soluble.
All silver salts (except AgNO3) are insoluble.
All acetates (except those of silver, mercury, and bismuth) are soluble.
All nitrates are soluble.
All chlorides (except AgCl, CuCl, PbCl2, and Hg2Cl2) are soluble.
All sulfates (except BaSO4, PbSO4, CaSO4, Hg2SO4, and Ag2SO4) are soluble.
All hydroxides (excerpt NaOH, KOH, NH4OH, Ba(OH)2, Ca(OH)2, and Sr(OH)2 are insoluble.
All carbonates (except Na2CO3, K2CO3, and (NH4)2CO3) are insoluble.

MB

[Sev]

All sodium salts are soluble.
All potassium salts are soluble.

All alkali metal salts are soluble

All silver salts (except AgNO3) are insoluble.
All acetates (except those of silver, mercury, and bismuth) are soluble.

Isn't AgOAc soluble?  In fact, I thought all acetate salts were soluble.
I suppose it depends on where you draw line between soluble/insoluble.

[Marley2500]

General solubility rules:

All sodium salts are soluble.
All potassium salts are soluble.
All ammonium salts are soluble.
All silver salts (except AgNO3) are insoluble.
All acetates (except those of silver, mercury, and bismuth) are soluble.
All nitrates are soluble.
All chlorides (except AgCl, CuCl, PbCl2, and Hg2Cl2) are soluble.
All sulfates (except BaSO4, PbSO4, CaSO4, Hg2SO4, and Ag2SO4) are soluble.
All hydroxides (excerpt NaOH, KOH, NH4OH, Ba(OH)2, Ca(OH)2, and Sr(OH)2 are insoluble.
All carbonates (except Na2CO3, K2CO3, and (NH4)2CO3) are insoluble.

MB

Thank you for nothing.

Agrobert, thank you for responding to my message like a real person, instead of some chemistry robot like lost and found.

[Borek]

Powdered glucose dissolves pretty quickly. Not sure how/if it will work, but you may try to spray some water on your object, sprinkle with glucose, wait till dry, repeat till layer is thick enough. Just don't use lots of water - only some mist.

[The Tao]

General solubility rules:

All sodium salts are soluble.
All potassium salts are soluble.
All ammonium salts are soluble.
All silver salts (except AgNO3) are insoluble.
All acetates (except those of silver, mercury, and bismuth) are soluble.
All nitrates are soluble.
All chlorides (except AgCl, CuCl, PbCl2, and Hg2Cl2) are soluble.
All sulfates (except BaSO4, PbSO4, CaSO4, Hg2SO4, and Ag2SO4) are soluble.
All hydroxides (excerpt NaOH, KOH, NH4OH, Ba(OH)2, Ca(OH)2, and Sr(OH)2 are insoluble.
All carbonates (except Na2CO3, K2CO3, and (NH4)2CO3) are insoluble.

MB

Thank you for nothing.

Agrobert, thank you for responding to my message like a real person, instead of some chemistry robot like lost and found.

The irony is "boiling" over.