Filling-well: An effective technique to handle incomplete well-log data for lithology classification using machine learning algorithms

Lithology classification is crucial for efficient and sustainable resource exploration in the oil and gas industry. Missing values in well-log data, such as Gamma Ray (GR), Neutron Porosity (NPHI), Bulk Density (RHOB), Deep Resistivity (RS), Delta Time Compressional (DTCO), Delta Time Shear (DTSM), and Resistivity Deep (RD), significantly affect machine learning classification accuracy. This study applied three algorithms, extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost), K-nearest neighbours (KNN), and the artificial neural network (ANN), to handle missing values in well-log datasets, particularly datasets with extreme missing data (30 %). Results indicated that XGBoost was the most efficient and accurate, especially for RHOB, NPHI, DTCO, and DTSM, with the lowest Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) and Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) values. The ANN also performed effectively, particularly on the GR, RS, and RD features, after the use of preprocessing techniques such as isolation forest and bias correction. However, the ANN can suffer from overfitting and requires large datasets for optimal performance. In contrast, KNN struggled with missing-not-at-random (MNAR) data due to its reliance on the k parameter and distance metric, making it less effective in mapping missing data relationships.•Missing values in well-log data can hinder lithology classification accuracy for efficient resource exploration in the oil and gas industry.•This research aims to address the problem of missing values in well-log datasets by applying machine learning algorithms such as XGBoost, ANN, and KNN to enhance classification performance.•XGBoost demonstrated superior performance in handling extreme missing data (30 %) in well-log datasets. ANN was effective but prone to overfitting for small datasets, while KNN struggled with missing-not-at-random (MNAR) data due to limitations in its distance-based approach.