Isolation piles are widely used to control the influence of shield tunnelling on adjacent buildings as an effective protective measure. However, the restraint effect of isolation pile on surface settlement trough is rarely explored from the internal mechanism. Firstly, the restraint mechanism of isolation piles is investigated from the pile-soil-tunnel interaction mechanism. Secondly, based on the Melan solution and the Loganathan formula, the analytical solution of surface settlement trough under the influence of adjacent isolation piles is derived. Thirdly, in order to satisfy the engineering analysis scale and reflect the friction characteristics between isolation pile and soil particles simultaneously, the FDM-DEM coupling technique is introduced to establish a numerical model including discrete medium and continuum medium. Finally, the applicability and reliability of the analytical solution and the FDM-DEM coupling numerical solution are verified by comparing field measured data. The results indicate that the surface settlement trough under the influence of isolation piles will have an asymmetric distribution. Surface settlement tends to develop more to the opposite side of the tunnel when isolation piles are pre-installed on one side. The findings of the study have substantial theoretical significance and engineering reference value.

The high-energy-level dynamic compaction method is widely used in various foundation treatment projects, but its reinforcement mechanism still lags behind the practice. In view of this, a three-dimensional fluid–solid coupling dynamic analysis model was established on the basis of the FDM–DEM coupling method. The variation trends of crater depth, soil void ratio, vertical additional dynamic stress, and pore water pressure during the process of dynamic compaction were analyzed. The results indicate that the curvature of the crater depth fitting curve gradually decreases with the increase in strike times, tending to a stable value. The initial particle structure is altered by the huge dynamic stress induced by dynamic compaction. As strike times increase, the soil void ratio decreases gradually. The vertical additional dynamic stress is the fundamental reason resulting in foundation compaction. Precipitation preloading before dynamic compaction can improve the reinforcement effect of dynamic compaction, making up for the deficiency that the vertical additional dynamic stress attenuates rapidly along the depth direction. The simulated CPT results illustrate that the modulus of foundation soil can be increased by 3–5 times after dynamic compaction. The research results can provide important reference for similar projects.