A single-cylinder diesel engine has been converted into a dual-fuel engine to operate with natural gas together with a pilot injection of diesel fuel used to ignite the CNG-air charge. The CNG was injected into the intake manifold via a gas injector on purpose designed for this application. The main performance of the gas injector, such as flow coefficient, instantaneous mass flow rate, delay time between electrical signal and opening of the injector, have been characterized by testing the injector in a constant-volume optical vessel. The CNG jet structure has also been characterized by means of shadowgraphy technique. The engine, operating in dual-fuel mode, has been tested on a wide range of operating conditions spanning different values of engine load and speed. For all the tested operating conditions, the effect of CNG and diesel fuel injection pressure, together with the amount of fuel injected during the pilot injection, were analyzed on the combustion development and, as a consequence, on the engine performance, in terms of specific emission levels and fuel consumption. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.