Process for telomerizing dienes

A process for the preparation of di-n-octyl phthalate which comprises:

• 1) reacting butadiene and water in the presence of a palladium compound, a water-soluble phosphine ligand and a base, wherein the water soluble phosphate ligand is a bidentate ligand of the formula ##STR7## in which R is identical or different and is phenyl, C.sub.1 -C.sub.12 -alkyl or C.sub.3 -C.sub.10 -cycloalkyl, which may be unsubstituted or substituted by one or more radicals R',
• R' is identical or different and is SO.sub.3.sup.- M.sup.+, --NMe.sub.3.sup.+ or --COO.sup.- M.sup.+,
• n is an integer from 1 to 6, in each case based on a naphthyl backbone, and
• M is H, Na, K, Cs or R".sub.4 N.sup.+ where R" is identical or different and is H, C.sub.1 -C.sub.12 -alkyl or C.sub.1 -C.sub.10 -cycloalkyl;
• 2) hydrogenating the 2,7-octadienol obtained in step 1 to produce 1-octanol;
• and
• 3) resulting 1-octanol with phthalic anhydride to produce reacting the di-n-octyl phthalate.