This study was performed to investigate the effect of fuel combustion enhancing apparatus(FCEA) for ionization of intaking air into cylinder combustion chamber on the combustion performance and emissions characteristics in a 4-cylinder common-rail direct injection diesel engine. The experiments were applied to the engine at an engine speed of 1,500rpm under 20Nm, 40Nm, 60Nm and 80Nm conditions. The test results were compared to each other with or without the FCEA. In the case of the FCEA, the combustion pressure, peak combustion pressure and rate of heat release were increased slightly and the brake specific fuel consumption(BSFC) was decreased slightly when compared to that without the FCEA under all loads at an engine speed of 1,500rpm. However, in the case of the FCEA, the nitrogen oxide(NOx) were increased slightly, the carbon monoxide(CO) and particulate matter(PM) were decreased slightly when compared to that without the FCEA under all loads at an engine speed of 1,500rpm.